When The Lines Blur
by Ghostwriter
Summary: They were told they were saving the world. They were lied to.
1. The War

WHEN THE LINES BLUR

AUTHOR'S NOTE/DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "A Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to use the concept. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own the plot.

16000 YEARS AGO

In his Chamber Of Command, Zedd narrowed his eyes as he silently plotted his next move. He couldn't let Zordon's forces gain another inch. He sighed and ran a hand over his chrome-plated face, an unfortunate casualty of the war-one of many.

"What's wrong, Zeddy?" a voice asked. He turned around to see his wife, Rita, who was carrying their three-year old son Trigon. Zedd smiled, though it wasn't visible. Rita. If it wasn't for his wife and son, he was sure he would've gone crazy long ago.

"Just the same old situation, my dear. Just trying to figure out Zordon's next move so that we can plot accordingly," he answered. Rita frowned at the mention of their nemesis. The man was a great wizard with an insurmountable amount of power-power that had convinced him that he could rule over everyone and everything.

"Well, where does he look like he's headed for next?" she asked, shifting their son who played with his thin, green rectangular necklace, a rare jade mineral from Zedd's home world of Keslon.

"I'm not sure. He's gotten craftier in his attacks," came the answer.

"Hmm," Rita mused. She began to say something else but a blast cut her off.

"What in the galaxy?" she screeched. For an answer, a squadron of soldiers came rushing in. The woman's face darkened and she summoned her magic wand simultaneously teleporting Trigon to his room just as her husband conjured up his staff.

"GOLDAR! SCORPINA! GET IN HERE NOW!" Zedd roared. Almost instantly, the two warriors were at their sides. Both wore golden armor, though Goldar was a blue griffin creature and Scorpina was half scorpion, having the features of a human. Seeing the oncoming assault, the two generals threw themselves into the melee. Meanwhile, a soldier was sneaking through the palace. He made his way through the halls silently. When he reached his destination, his lips curved into a terrible smile. Yes, Zordon would be so pleased. The soldier stepped into the room, which was being guarded by a dog-like creature. Hearing footsteps, Finster and grabbed a blaster. Before he could fire, the soldier just smirked and pulled out his own gun, squeezing the trigger, and Finster fell to the ground with a moan as Trigon started to cry. _I'll have to move fast. The stun effect won't last long_, the man thought to himself. Making shushing noises, the soldier picked the child up.

"It's going to be okay, little one. Mommy and Daddy just need to be taught a little lesson," he smirked, and then disappeared. In the Chamber Of Command, Rita and Zedd were fighting furiously when Zordon's army disappeared.

"What! What's going on?" she wondered. Then, there was a frightened shout.

"Empress Rita! Lord Zedd! Get in here!" a voice called. Rita turned to Zedd in alarm. That had come from Trigon's room! Feeling the same terror of his wife, Zedd took off, Rita, Goldar, and Scorpina at his heels. When they got there, they saw Baboo and Squatt fanning Finster who was sitting in a chair.

"Finster, what happened?" Rita questioned in concern.

"My Queen, I'm sorry. I let him get the drop on me," Finster apologized. Feeling her stomach lurch, she hurried to the bed

"TRIGO-O-O-ON!" she shrieked.

"They took Trigon?" her husband growled. _I never thought Zordon would stoop so low_, he thought to himself. Without waiting to be asked, Goldar and Scorpina went off to see if they could track the kidnapper. However, their search proved fruitless. Zordon's minion had left nothing for them to track. Hours later, they returned to the palace, tired and dusty. They trudged into the palace and headed for their lord's chambers. Hearing footsteps, Rita and Zedd jumped to their feet. One look at their generals faces told the couple all they needed to know: Trigon was gone. Sinking to her knees, Rita started to sob and Scorpina bent down next to her, placing her hands on the woman's shoulders.

"We'll find him, Empress. I swear it. We won't let Zordon win." Her only answer was increasing sobs.


	2. First Day Of School

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "A Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own the plot. This is my take on "Green With Evil" though everything up to now is canon. I use some lines from "Green With Evil: Out Of Control".

1993

Rita stared at Earth through her telescope. Everything was peaceful so far. _It's a shame that I'll have to change that in a bit_, she thought to herself. However, it was a necessary evil. Zordon had convinced five teens that she was an evil space witch bent on destroying the world. _Well, I better check on the Rangers, just for my own peace of mind_, she thought, recalling evidence she had seen of Zordon's bad temper. She adjusted the telescope so that she could see inside the buildings. _This really is annoying. I ought to talk to Zedd about some modifications for this thing_, she griped silently. As the telescope zoomed in, she began to hear the faint sounds of what sounded like a fight. _What in the galaxy?_ she wondered. What was going on? Zooming in closer, she was able to see Jason Scott, the Red Ranger fighting someone in a makeshift ring. Her brows furrowed in confusion. What was this?

"Point to the challenger! Go back to your places!" she heard a man call. _Ah. Some kind of competition_, she realized. The Red Ranger and his friends-Kimberly Hart, the Pink Ranger, Billy Cranston, the Blue Ranger, Trini Kwan, the Yellow Ranger, and Zack Taylor, the Black Ranger, all studied an Earth style of fighting known as "martial arts" and she had heard them talk about controlled fights known as "competitions" or tournaments". She winced as she saw Jason get bested and then lightly punched in the side, where she knew a bruise lay. His face contorted in pain and Rita cringed. That bruise had been the result of one of his fights with Goldar. Then, they continued their match, which soon ended in a draw. _Hmmm…interesting_, Rita thought. Perhaps they could use Jason's challenger as a rival for the Rangers. Not an option she relished, but at this point, she was growing a bit desperate. She watched as they shook hands and then pulled away. She didn't need to keep spying on them. Down on Earth, Tommy said goodbye to the boy he had been fighting against and then walked out of the youth center. _Wow. That guy was amazing. I've never been challenged like that before_, he thought to himself. And it had felt good. It had kept him on his toes. His mind drifted to the girl in pink he had seen. She was seriously cute. He hoped she was going to his new school, Angel Grove High. If she was, he'd have a chance to talk to her. He would've stayed to chat with her, but the Olivers had told him that they had a surprise for him, and to come straight home. Tommy frowned. In the past, when foster parents had said things like that, it had never been good. But so far, the Olivers seemed to be different. They were good to him: fed him, clothed him, didn't hurt him…what more could he ask for? But he didn't want to risk it all changing. That's why he always did whatever they asked of him, **when** they asked it. When he got home, he found the couple, Melinda and Stephen Oliver, sitting on the living room couch.

"What's goin' on?" he asked suspiciously, some of his old street mannerisms instinctively taking over as he prepped his body for a hasty retreat.

"Tommy, please join us," Melinda requested, though she didn't ask him to sit. That was something he wouldn't do, especially if he thought he was in trouble. Warily, Tommy did as he was asked. To his surprise, the two appeared to be extremely nervous and the boy noted some kind of certificate in the man's hands.

"Tommy, we know we're not your real parents, and that you've been wanting to find them, but…Melinda and I…well, you know we can't have kids of our own, and you coming to us has been a blessing," Stephen began. Tommy's body relaxed somewhat, though he didn't sit down. What were they getting at?

"Tommy, what Stephen's trying to say is, we'd like to adopt you. We've talked about this, and we've even gone through the process and have one more step to go before we're finished. However, we won't do it if it's not what you want," Melinda chimed in. Tommy stared at them in shock. Adopt him? They were serious? It hadn't just been talk?

"Tommy?" Stephen asked nervously.

"Yeah. Yeah. I'd-I'd like that," Tommy said. He laughed in disbelief. _I can't believe this is happening_, he thought to himself.

"All right then. I'll see what I can do to get this rushed through," Stephen said as he and wife stood up. Tommy then went to his room and started organizing the things he'd need for school on Monday. When Monday finally came, Tommy couldn't keep the grin off of his face. True to his word, Stephen had pushed the adoption papers through, though it hadn't taken much convincing since the couple had started the process long ago. Thus, he was now an Oliver. Tommy looked at the map of the school and frowned. Homeroom. Where was his homeroom? Just then, he heard the sounds of someone talking. Well, arguing was more like it. Somewhat concerned, he stepped forward to see two boys-one tall and really skinny, the other short and fat, though not quite obese-harassing a girl wearing a pink shirt with blue jeans laced by a brown belt.

"Looks like someone needs to be taught a lesson," the shorter one said. _Hey! That's no way to talk about a lady!_ Tommy thought to himself.

"I'd like to see you try it," the girl commented dryly. _Hey, she's spunky_, Tommy mused to himself. He had to see what she'd do. The lankier of the two went to grab her wrist, but she stepped back and then grabbed his hand and twisted it slightly. He screamed in pain. "Don't ever think you can try that again, okay, Skull?" she asked. He nodded and ran off. His friend, however, just growled, and then rushed at her. She quickly flipped out of the way causing the boy to have to skid to a stop. He growled again and once again advanced on her, this time successfully tackling and knocking her to the ground. "Hey! Get off of me, Bulk!" she exclaimed, struggling to get free. _Okay, time to step in_, Tommy decided and quickly stepped forward.

"Hey! The lady said 'Get off'!" he snapped, pulling the boy away. Once free, the girl quickly climbed to her feet just as her friends walked up. "That's no way to treat a lady. Get gone before I get mad," he warned. Bulk's eyes widened and he ran off stammering. Tommy turned back to the girl.

"Thanks. That was really great," she said.

"Hey, don't worry about it. Sorry I didn't step in sooner, but it had looked like you had it under control," he answered.

"I'm just glad you stepped in when you did. We were all too far away to help when Bulk tackled her," a boy in red said. "Oh, um, I'm Jason, and these are my friends Zack, Trini, Billy, and Kimberly," he continued, pointing to each in turn.

"I'm Tommy," Tommy introduced himself.

"You're new around here, aren't you?" Kimberly asked.

"Yeah," Tommy answered.

"Where you headed?" Jason questioned.

"Homeroom. Room 101," Tommy replied.

"That's ours," Trini told him.

"Seeing as how we all have the same destination, we can all promenade there," Billy declared.

"Huh?" Tommy asked, looking to the others, who also looked confusion.

"Translation?" Kimberly added.

"We can all walk together," Trini said.

"Oh," they all chorused and they all headed for the room. Tommy grinned. This was a good start to his day.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I sped up the adoption process, because worked for this story.


	3. Discovery And Secret

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Jeremy Shane: Thanks. Here's more.

Kellybird: Thanks, I'm glad you like it. Well, here's more.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with the idea. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. Only the plot is mine.

In the Command Center, Zordon, and his loyal subject, Alpha 5, watched the Rangers through the viewing globe.

"Stupid humans. They think they're saving the world? Ha! They're just helping you enslave it," Alpha sneered. Zordon chuckled.

"Yes. Everything is going according to plan," Zordon commented. _Soon those stupid teenagers will have left me with enough ground to take over Angel Grove and then…the world_, he thought. And after that, he would have his soldiers destroy them. If he could've, Zordon would've smirked. There was no way the teens would be able to fight them now. Their connection to the Power Coins and him was too strong. Back at Angel Grove High, Jason, Kimberly, Zack, Trini, Billy, and Tommy were taking notes. At least, Tommy was taking notes: he was still pretty excited about the fact that he now had a last name. _And what was up with that weird dream last night?_ he wondered. No one in the dream looked familiar, though he hadn't been scared of them. Almost instinctively, his hand went to the rectangular jade necklace around his neck. _Where did this come from?_ he wondered. According to the stories from the owners of the orphanage, he had been wearing it when a couple had found him after he had been abandoned. Then, he mentally shook his head and turned his attention back to the lecture. When class was done, he gathered up his things and took out his schedule.

"Okay, science, science," he muttered.

"What room number?" Jason asked, glancing at him.

"Uh, 202," Tommy answered, looking at the sheet.

"Oh, that's upstairs with Ms. Crenshaw," Kimberly stated.

"You have her?" Tommy asked hopefully. _Maybe I'll be able to spend some more time with her_, he thought.

"No, Trini does, though," Kimberly replied. Tommy's face fell slightly and Trini had to hold back a grin. It looked like Kimberly wasn't the only one smitten.

"Come on. Ms. Crenshaw can be a bear and you don't wanna be late on your first day," Trini told him. Tommy smiled at her gratefully and followed her. The rest of the day went like that, with one of the five Rangers helping Tommy find a class even when he was the only one in it. At the end of the day, they all headed out. All of a sudden, there was a blubbering noise.

"What is it **that**?" Tommy wondered. _And why does it sound familiar?_ he mused.

"Watch it!" Zack shouted at the same time as Putties appeared.

"Oh, I knew this day was going too well," Kimberly said apprehensively as she and the others got into stances of defense. _What's Rita up to, now?_ she wondered. The Putties came at the group and after quick high fives with one other among Rangers to share power, they all went into action. On the moon, Rita watched the fight through her telescope. Her eyes widened when she saw Jason's competitor fighting the Putties. _I didn't mean for a civilian to get involved!_ she silently exclaimed. Then, her eyes narrowed. She hadn't noticed it before, but there was something familiar about the boy in green. Despite herself, she became immersed in watching the six teens fight off her Putties. _Hmm. What kind of fighting is that?_ Rita wondered, staring at the boy in green. Though disciplined, it seemed to be a bit wilder of a technique than the other Rangers'. As she continued to watch the fight, Rita noticed something else: Jason was moving a lot slower than he normally did and seemed to be favoring his right arm. _Now, what's wrong with him?_ she wondered in concern. As Jason fought, he tried not to use his right arm as much as possible. The last the needed was to be incapacitated while fighting off the Putties. One of the Putties kicked him in the side and Jason's face twisted in pain. Another kick came and the Red Ranger was felled. Seeing this, Tommy jumped through air, landed in the midst of the clay creatures, and kicked them away as Zack ran to check on the boy.

"Hey, you all right, man?" he asked, helping his friend up.

"Yeah. Thanks," came the response and Jason once again began fighting. In the Lunar Palace, in Finster's laboratory, a gold coin began glowing green.

"What in the galaxy?" Finster asked. The Dragon Coin hadn't reacted like this for centuries. Not since…his eyes widening, Finster grabbed the coin and ran to where Rita was. "Empress! Empress! He's alive! Trigon's alive!" he shouted, causing Squatt, Baboo, Goldar, and Rita to turn to stare at him in surprise.

"What are you talking about, Finster? There has been no trace of Trigon for centuries," Rita reminded.

"His coin, Empress! Look at his coin!" Finster urged, handing it to the woman and Rita's eyes widened in surprise. It was glowing green. She then opened up a communications channel.

"Yes, Rita, what is it?" Zedd asked once the contact had been established.

"Trigon's been found," she reported.

"WHAT!" Almost instantly, the being was in the palace. "What do you mean he's been found?" he questioned. _Could it be true? Where in the galaxy has he been?_ he wondered as his wife showed him the glowing coin.

"I've had Finster keep the Dragon Coin in his laboratory in case of another attack," Rita explained.

"Yes, and it just recently started glowing," Finster explained. On Earth, the Putties had finally disappeared.

"What was that all about and what were those things?" Tommy wondered. _And why can't I shake the feeling that I know them?_ he wondered.

"They're Putties. The Power Rangers fight 'em all the time. I don't know why they attacked us though," Jason replied with a wince.

"Hey, you okay? You look like you got hit pretty bad," Zack commented.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I just-I gotta get home. My dad's gonna flip," Jason said. Then, before anyone could stop him, the Red Ranger broke away from the group and ran in the direction his house. When he got inside, he quietly closed the door.

"You're late," a voice snapped.

"Yes, Sir," Jason admitted as his father, Curtis Scott, walked up, still wearing his Angel Grove Police uniform.

"Shed…now," Curtis commanded. Jason's face went pale he closed his eyes briefly before reopening them.

"Yes, Sir," he repeated, and then went to the backyard, where his father kept his shed and walked into it. The man followed his son and roughly pushed his son in, causing him to fall to the ground onto his knees. Jason cringed as the whip fell for the first time. The boy gritted his teeth. He wasn't going to give his father the satisfaction of hearing him cry out. The whip came down again and again, each time harder than the last, each blow knocking Jason down lower. Finally, Curtis Scott walked out of the shed, closed the door, and locked it, leaving Jason prostrate on the ground, blood seeping through his shirt.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I got the name "Crenshaw" from the "Are You Afraid OF The Dark?" episode "The Sorcerer's Apprentice", but not meant to be the same person.


	4. Revival Of Green

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Patrioticdelusions: Thanks. I will. Cool. See ya there.

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, here's more.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to go with the idea. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. Only the plot is mine. If you're confused on anything, it'll be explained in the story. I use some lines from "The Green Candle". For the remainder of the fic, regular italics are Tommy's thoughts or anyone else's and bold italics are Trigon's thoughts. I use a variation of a line from "Green With Evil 1: Out Of Control". For simplicity, I'll just be using the name "Tommy" in the narration, even though he may at times be addressed as "Trigon".

The next morning, Rita and Zedd were up early with a map of the universe that had every city, town, and county in every part of the universe and galaxy listed and a special wand, working on a locator spell. They both chanted in a foreign language for several minutes.

"Whisper softly, let it out. Find Trigon, point him out," they chorused together. On the table, the Green Power Coin glowed a dark and then bright green and they watched as the small wand shook and then zipped across the map. To their surprise, it stopped in Angel Grove.

"Are you serious?" Rita queried.

"That would be what the Earthlings call 'A great twist of irony'," Zedd commented. She went to her telescope and zeroed in on the coordinates she had seen on the map. To her surprise, it was where the Rangers' new friend was housed. She watched as the boy went about his morning routine, and when he was finally done, headed for Angel Grove High. Unaware that he was being spied upon, Tommy walked into Angel Grove High.

"Yo, Tommy! What's up, man?" Zack asked as he, Jason, Kimberly, Billy, and Trini approached him.

"Nothin' much," Tommy answered. _I can't tell them that I had another weird dream last night_, he thought. He had just met them and he didn't want them to freak them out. Unable to stop it, the dream came back. _A three-year old Tommy babbled as a woman in a cream colored dress held him in her arms. He played with the thin green necklace around his neck._ A hand on his arm broke his reverie.

"Huh?" he asked.

"Are you okay? You totally spaced," Kimberly told him.

"Yeah, I'm all right," he assured. With that, they went to their first class. Rita tapped her foot impatiently. They'd have to wait until they could get Tommy alone before they could make a move. Of course, they also had to figure out how to approach him without scaring him. For the two beings, the school day couldn't go by fast enough. When the school day was finally over, Rita grabbed the Green Power Coin and then teleported herself to Earth near the High School, making sure to remain hidden. As soon as he was alone, Rita began whispering a spell in her native language. Tommy stopped. Was that...whispering? And why did it sound familiar? _What's going on here?_ he wondered. And why wasn't he freaking out more? He wasn't sure why or how, but he instinctively knew that whatever was going on, wasn't going to harm him and that he should just go with it…a first for him. A few seconds later, he felt himself being teleported. Once Tommy was on the moon, Rita-who had transported herself back with Tommy-and Zedd hurried to the Rejuvenation Chamber. _Oh, I hope that spell work and Trigon remembers us_, the woman thought to herself. They both watched as a green wave of energy enveloped Tommy and came to rest on him protectively. Then, he sat up.

"What's going on?" he asked, sounding like he had been woken up from a nap, which technically, Rita and Zedd supposed he had.

"Do you know who you are?" Zedd asked hesitantly. _Remember, don't scare him_, he cautioned himself.

"My name's Trigon," Tommy replied in confusion. Then, "No! Tommy! W-wait!" he exclaimed in frustration as both sets of memories invaded his mind.

"Calm down, calm down. Both are correct," Rita assured. "Just let everything settle," she advised. _Boy is this going to cause a headache_, she thought. Tommy let out a deep breath and did as the woman suggested. _Whoa. This is weird_, he thought.

"The last thing I remember-as Trigon-is falling asleep in my room, and then when I woke up-I was at some kind of orphanage," Tommy stated. "Did you abandon me?" he asked.

"No!" Rita and Zedd exclaimed together.

"You were stolen by our enemy Zordon because we were trying to keep him from taking over the universe," Rita explained. Tommy nodded, but still looked at them distrustfully. Zedd let out a sigh. He couldn't blame the boy for being suspicious. It **did** sound far-fetched. Before either monarch could say anything more, they heard footsteps. Turning, they saw Goldar approaching them.

"How is he?" he asked. Tommy's jaw dropped.

"That's the thing in my dream!" he exclaimed, standing up. _But how can it be real?_ he wondered. _**It's Goldar**_, came the realization.

"Do you remember who you are?" Goldar asked.

"I'm Trigon and you're Goldar," Tommy replied. Goldar nodded. _Good. The spell worked_, he thought.

"Now then, I realize that this is a lot to take in, and normally I'd wait until you were better acclimated with your memories, but I'm afraid we just don't have the time," Zedd told him.

"What's going on?" Tommy asked.

"Zordon has tricked five teens into believing that they are helping him save the world, when in fact, they are helping him to enslave it," Rita answered. _What? That can't be good!_ Tommy thought. _**Zordon. I'll destroy him and make sure he can't hurt anyone else**_, his mind continued.

"Who is he using?" Tommy asked, though he had a sick feeling that he already knew.

"Jason is the Red Ranger, Kimberly is the Pink Ranger, Billy is the Blue Ranger, Trini is the Yellow Ranger, and Zack is the Black Ranger," Rita told him.

"I've got to help them, but how?" Tommy wondered. Rita took Tommy's hand and gave him the Power Coin. "The Dragon Coin?" he asked in surprise.

"It was the only one we were able to keep safely, Zordon acquired the rest," his mother told him.

"How do we destroy him?" Tommy snarled, his eyes blazing green and red. _The Coin's connecting that's good_, Rita thought as she saw the green match Zedd's red eyes.

"Patience. We must come up with a plan that can draw the Rangers out," Goldar cautioned.

"What do you mean?" Tommy questioned.

"We've been using second rate monsters-no offense to Finster's work of course-to battle the Rangers," Zedd answered.

"You mean monsters that are strong enough to challenge them, but not actually defeat them?" Tommy asked.

"Precisely," Zedd responded.

"Empress, Lord Zedd, what if you send me down? That way, it looks like a standard attack, and then Trigon can join me in the battle," Goldar suggested.

"Yes, this is way he can get battle experience, but still have some backup if need be," Zedd agreed.

"Excellent idea, Goldar," Rita praised. Goldar gave a small grin at and bowed his head slightly. Tommy closed his fist over the coin and visualized the suit. Almost instantly, he was morphed. Rita and Zedd looked at each other and smiled with pride as their son stood in the green suit covered. The suit was green with white diamond-like stripes that run up his arms and until they reached a gold band as well as being similarly adorned on his legs. Over the suit was a gold padded shield with a diamond in the middle.

"Yes. How lovely," Rita approved. _He looks so handsome_, she thought. Tommy turned his attention to Rita, Zedd, and Goldar.

"To the fall of Zordon and to the rescue of the Power Rangers!" he cried, raising a fist into the air.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Tommy doesn't trust easily, but his memories as Trigon gave him an instinctive trust of Rita, Zedd, and their subjects, which is why he agrees to help them so fast.


	5. Upped Stakes

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Jeremy Shane: Thanks. I'm glad you liked it.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has let me run with the idea. Later in the fic, there will be some scenes that appeared in the first draft of "Dragon's Path", but Crowned Tiger has given me permission to use them. For this, Rita doesn't throw the wand down to Earth to make things grow, but instead just uses energy from it. I **do** use some lines and scenes from "Green With Evil Part 1: Out Of Control" as well as a line from "The Mutiny Part 1".

Moments later, Goldar was in the abandoned district of Angel Grove, firing energy bolts from his sword at the building.

"So Rita's sent down Goldar, has she? I guess it's time to put those stupid teenagers to work," Alpha sneered. Then, he pressed a button on the consoles. Jason, Kimberly, Zack, Trini, and Billy were in the Rad Bug, driving to Billy's house when they heard the summons.

"What's up Alpha?" Jason asked as Billy pulled over and parked.

"You must hurry! Goldar's tearing up the abandoned warehouse district!" Alpha exclaimed.

"We're on it," Jason promised and they all hurried to a more secluded spot.

"You guys ever notice how Goldar and the monsters never go anywhere there's a residence or a business?" Kimberly queried.

"That's what you call small favors," Zack replied. _But that is kinda weird_, he added to himself.

"It's morphin' time!" Jason shouted.

"Mastodon!" Zack yelled.

"Pterodactyl!" Kimberly exclaimed.

"Triceratops!" Billy called.

"Saber-toothed Tiger!" Trini cried.

"Tyrannosaurus!" Jason shouted. Moments later, they were at the site of Goldar's attack. The Rangers pulled out their Power Weapons and charged at the griffin. Goldar expertly dodged the blows, lashing out with his own attacks, being careful to hold back slightly. He didn't want to actually hurt them, just make it seem like he did. As they fought, he subtly looked around. _Good. There's plenty of room for them to maneuver in their zords_, he thought.

"Ready, Empress!" he shouted.

"Magic Wand, make Goldar grow!" Rita shouted. Electricity crackled from the wand, hitting the griffin, who roared as he felt himself growing bigger. _I'll never get used to that_, he thought to himself.

"We need Dinozord Power now!" the Rangers called together. Immediately, the Tyrannosaurus, Pterodactyl, Triceratops, Saber-toothed Tiger, and Mastodon zords came from their hiding places.

"Initiate Megazord now!" the Red Ranger instructed and the Rangers did so. Almost immediately, the Red Ranger called for the Power Sword and Goldar and the Megazord continued to fight. In the Lunar Palace, Tommy waited anxiously. _Come on, come on. Give me an opening!_ he thought. Then, Goldar was felled.

"Now it's my turn!" Tommy declared and teleported himself into the fight.

"Huh? Who's that?" the other Rangers asked. To their surprise, he disappeared from the ground. Suddenly, they heard the sound of the back of the Megazord opening. _Huh? What's going on?_ the Red Ranger wondered as they all turned around. Without a word, the Green Ranger punched the Red Ranger and then knocked the other Rangers back, causing them all to fall out of the Megazord. As soon as he landed, the Red Ranger grunted in pain. _Ow! Ow! Back!_ he thought as the previous night's injuries were pressed against. Shakily, he climbed to his feet and the other Rangers followed suit. The Green Ranger rushed through them, attacking them with his a green dagger that had been in his holster. What they didn't know was that Alpha and Zordon were watching the whole thing from the Command Center.

"I don't believe this! Rita and Zedd managed to create the Green Ranger!" Alpha exclaimed.

"This could only mean one thing…they have found their son," Zordon commented dourly. _ I don't believe this. _ _If Trigon talks to the Rangers, he'll no doubt tell them the truth about me_, he thought. Not that any of them would believe it, but why take an unnecessary chance?

"But how? You trapped him in a cryogenic sleep and when he woke up, his energy was shielded from them," Alpha reminded.

"Apparently the shield broke," Zordon said. They watched the viewing globe to see the Blue and Yellow Rangers get tossed about like rag dolls.

"You're so tough, take me on!" they heard Jason shout. Zordon rolled his eyes. _Arrogant human. You won't amount to anything once I gain control of the world_, he thought. Then, he watched as the Green Ranger threw a bolt of energy at the Rangers, knocking them down.

"Alpha, teleport the Rangers here before they get themselves killed," Zordon sighed. Alpha grumbled, but did as he was told, resulting in Goldar and the Green Ranger disappearing as well, Goldar to the Lunar Palace and the Green Ranger to the Oliver house.

"Man, that guy was tough," Jason complained, taking off his helmet.

"Zordon, who was that?" Trini wondered as she and the others did the same.

"I am not certain, Rangers, but I fear it is an evil that I had hoped would not come," Zordon answered.

"What are you talking about?" Kimberly asked nervously.

"The Green Ranger could only be Trigon, the son of Rita and Zedd," Zordon told them.

"Who's Zedd?" Billy wondered.

"A being even more powerful and evil than Rita. He has been out conquering other galaxies, but he may have returned if they have discovered their lost son," Zordon answered.

"You mean there's somebody worse than Rita?" Kimberly asked in a soft voice. Sensing her distress, Jason reached out and gave her hand a small, reassuring squeeze.  
>"I'm afraid so, Kimberly," Zordon responded.<p>

"So, how do we prepare to fight this guy?" Zack wondered.

"Alpha and I will monitor the situation and contact you if you are needed. For now, I would advise you to go to your homes. You may soon be facing a battle unlike any other," Zordon told them. The Rangers nodded and demorphed before teleporting to their homes. At their respective houses, Kimberly, Trini, Billy, and Zack each just walked in and began answering a flurry of harried questions. Jason, however, nervously rubbed his hands on his jeans. _Please…be in a good mood_, he silently implored. Cautiously, he went in. Not seeing anyone, he headed for his bedroom.

"Where've you been, boy?" Startled, Jason jumped and then turned to see his father, who had changed from his work clothes to something more casual.

"Uh…" Jason's mind raced. What could he say that could placate him?

"I said, 'Where've you been, boy'?" the man repeated, angrily stepping closer.

"I was out," Jason responded carefully.

"'Out'?" the man repeated with a disdainful laugh. "You know the rules, boy," he said. With a heavy sigh, Jason started to pass his father only to have the man grab his arm and pulled him back. "I'm not done talking to you," he snarled.

"Could we **not** do this?" he asked, yanking out of the grasp. "I just wanna get my homework done."

"And I said 'I'm not done talking to you'," Curtis responded, grabbing Jason's arm again.

"You don't wanna **talk**! You just wanna beat the heck outta me! You know, if Mom was still alive, she wouldn't let you do this!" Jason shouted, trying to break free again. The next thing he knew, he had been shoved against the wall.

"What have I told you about back talk in this house?" the man demanded. Jason's face paled and he tried to brace himself for the blows that were sure to come.

"W-w-wait, Dad! I'm sorry! No!" His cries were cut off as he was thrown across the room. Meanwhile, Tommy was pacing around in his room. What was he going to do? He didn't want to leave the Olivers, they were actually pretty decent, but he had found his birth parents. He sighed. Maybe he should leave them. _**They're not your parents, you shouldn't care about them**_, he thought. _They've been really cool to me. They put up a lot from me_, he thought. Then, he let out a scoff. He was literally arguing with himself. Terrific. But it still didn't solve his problem. What Tommy didn't know was that Zedd and Rita were watching him.

"What do you think about this couple, my dear?" he asked.

"Well, they seem nice. Their concern for Trigon was genuine," she answered.

"That's what I was thinking. And if he's happy with them, I certainly wouldn't want to take that away." They looked at each other apprehensively. Back at the Scott residence, Jason was still trying to defend himself against his father's attacks. However, his blocks had become slower. Then, mercifully, the attacks stopped.

"Get up," Curtis snarled, pulling Jason to his feet before he could object. "I'm going to ask you one last time…where…were…you?" he asked slowly and deliberately.

"I told you…I was out…I lost track of time," Jason wheezed. _Please…please…please stop_, he thought to himself. Curtis' response was to backhand him.

"Go to your room and stay there until you can stop lying," he snarled. Jason's Adam's apple constricted, but he nodded obediently. His father let him go and Jason limped to his room, where he sat on the bed. What was he going to do? _I can't-I can't let this continue. He'll kill me_, he thought. But who could he tell? His dad would just shut it up. Jason sighed and messed up his hair with his hands as the images ran through his head. His throat constricted and he wrapped his arms around himself and started to cry.


	6. Recruitment And Desperation

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

JediMasterSarah: Yeah, me too, and I'm the one writing it. However, it'll tie in with something in the long run. Well, here's another chap.

Jeremy Shane: Thanks. Here's more.

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. This was inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to go ahead with it. Bold is telepathic speak and Trigon's speak will be underlined in that instance.

The next day at school, Zack, Kimberly, Billy, Trini, and Tommy were all waiting for Jason.

"This isn't like him, is it?" Tommy asked.

"No, it's not," Kimberly replied. _I hope everything's okay. I hope Rita didn't kidnap him or…_she mentally shook the thought off. Jason had given them no indication that things were bad at home. Everything was fine.

"Oh, no," Trini said. Or not. Along with the others, Kimberly turned to watch as Jason walked in. At first you couldn't see what was wrong, but it soon became apparent that their friend was trying not to show any pain as he walked and as the boy got closer, you could see the faint markings of a bruise around his right eye.

"Jase," Zack in trepidation as the boy walked up.

"It's fine. I just walked into a door," Jason told them. Tommy's breath caught. _Oh, man_, he thought to himself.

"'Walked into a door my eye'," Kimberly snapped. "I don't get this, Jason! Why do you put up with this!" she asked.

"Kim," Tommy said. This wasn't the time or the place to confront Jason about his blatant lie, though he **was** curious as to who was hurting him. Kimberly huffed and went off to her next class. Jason's eyes darted nervously. Before anyone else could say anything, the warning bell rang and they all headed for homeroom, where Jason already was. While the other students talked amongst themselves, Jason focused on organizing his backpack as well as double-checking his assignments, while trying not to move his body too much. He was pretty sure he had a couple of broken bones somewhere, but he couldn't be positive. At least this time he could actually walk. He blew out a breath. There was no need to dwell on that. He had more important things to deal with, such as the arrival of the Green Ranger. Unnoticed by the others, Tommy watched Jason in concern. _He's really trying not to move whenever possible. He must've been really worked over_, he thought, recalling instances when he had acted the same way. Then, he refocused on his own work, which was an outline of their next plan of so-called attack. He became so focused on it that when the end of homeroom came around, it surprised him. Without saying anything, he just gathered up his belongings and headed for his next class, sticking close to Jason, an action that he continued throughout the day. However, the Red Ranger didn't give any of his friends a chance to talk to him. When the bell rang for lunch, Kimberly grabbed Jason's arm and dragged him to a relatively secluded part of the hallway. Jason sighed.

"Whatever you're about to say, Kim. Don't," he warned.

"Jason, look at what he's doing to you. You have to put a stop to this," she insisted.

"He's been stressed lately, and I don't exactly help things," he shot back_. I know I have to stop it, Kim! I just don't know how! How can I betray him? __And besides, who would believe me?_ he wondered. Kimberly groaned in frustration. _Dang it! Why does he have to be so stubborn?_ she wondered, running her fingers through her hair.

"Jason, please get some help. He'll kill if you don't," she begged, grabbing his arm. Angrily, Jason pulled away.

"Stay out of this, Kim. I mean it," he snapped, and then headed to the cafeteria, leaving a worried Kimberly behind. The girl blew out a breath and then headed for the cafeteria. When Jason came back from his talk with Kimberly, Tommy looked at them, trying not to be obvious about it. **Trigon, I sense your distress. What is it?** he suddenly heard Rita's voice in his head. _Whoa, that's weird_, he thought. **Trigon?** Rita asked. **There's uh-there's something going on with one of the Rangers, but uh-I'm not sure what**, he answered. Then, he refocused his attention on his surroundings, implying that he didn't want to talk anymore. When lunch was over, he headed for his next class. Rita frowned.

"Empress, what is it?" Goldar asked.

"I think Trigon's hiding something from me," she answered.

"What do you mean?" Goldar queried. _And where's Zedd?_ he wondered. He had left in Serpenterra early that morning, but Empress had refused to say where he had gone. Not that they were expected to, he was, after all, just their soldier, but…still…it was a bit strange.

"A few moments ago, I sensed some distress coming from Trigon, and when I asked him what it was, he said that he thought there was something going on with one of the Rangers, but he wasn't sure what," Rita replied.

"And you don't think he told you the truth?" Goldar asked. Rita shook her head. _But why would he lie to me? I can understand him not trusting us on a personal level, but if it involves the well-being of the Rangers, Zedd and I need to know_, she thought. Meanwhile, Zedd had landed on Parta in the Tri Gamma system. He watched as a woman in golden armor handed her prisoner over to a figure of authority. Once she was satisfied that the prisoner was secure, she turned around. Seeing his chance, he quickly walked up to her.

"Scorpina," he said.

"Lord Zedd," the woman gasped and quickly dropped to a knee and bowed her head respectfully. _Blasted scorpion honor. She knows that's not necessary_, he thought to himself.

"Scorpina," he said. Hearing the reproach, she rose.

"Sorry. Old habit," she apologized. "How can I be of service?" she asked.

"Rita and I need your help against Zordon," Zed answered.

"Empress. Yes, I had heard that she was free, but I haven't had the time to come help. I've been keeping busy with various rescue missions," Scorpina replied.

"That's quite all right. She and I understand. However, the urgency of our war with Zordon and his robotic bucket of bolts has risen. He has recruited five Earth teens to help him under the guise of saving the planet," Zedd told her.

"WHAT!" Scorpina asked. "That's still a child! They can't even be persuaded to enlist in their planet's military groups!" she protested.

"We know. And that's why we were wondering if you'd help us," he replied.

"Of course I'll help!" Scorpina exclaimed.

"I wouldn't want you to abandon your other missions of course," Zedd continued.

"This is top priority. We all know how ruthless Zordon can be," Scorpina said. With that, they got into Serpenterra, where Zedd checked to make sure his cloaking shield was still holding and then went back to the Moon Palace. At the end of the school day, the Rangers each went their separate ways. Seeing his chance, Tommy hurried towards Jason.

"Hey, Jason, you wanna spar a bit?" he offered.

"I'd love to, but I can't. I gotta get home," came the response. _Yeah, I bet you do_, Tommy thought. "How 'bout a rain check?" Jason offered, holding out a hand.

"Yeah, that sounds good," Tommy agreed, shaking his hand. Immediately, Jason felt a weight lift as a familiar power entered him and the image of a dragon and tyrannosaurus fighting side-by-side swam in front of his eyes. _What?_ he asked.

"See ya later," Jason said and then walked off. _What the heck was that?_ he wondered.

"Alpha, I sense a weakening in Jason's connection to the grid. Teleport him here immediately," Zordon said suddenly. Alpha went over to the consoles and pressed a button. Seeing particles of red starting to envelop Jason, Tommy's eyes narrowed. Zordon. _Oh, no you don't_, he thought and then quickly hurried over to Jason.

"Hey, Jason, I forgot something," he said, placing his hand and coin on Jason's shoulder. Immediately, Jason disappeared in a flash of red and green. _Sorry for the kidnap, man. But it was for your own good_, he thought to himself.

"No! We've lost him!" Alpha shouted angrily. As he landed, Jason looked around frantically. Where was he? All he could see of the place he had been teleported to was fog and that he had been placed in some kind of arena. _This is not good_, he thought to himself. But why had Tommy done this to him? Was he the Green Ranger? _Maybe if I hop over that bar, I can find a way out of here_, he thought and then jogged over and put his hand on the bar. A jolt of electricity seared through his body and he fell to the ground. _Ow…okay…bad idea_, he thought to himself, rising to his feet.

"Uh, Empress, there's a life form in the training arena and it's not Goldar," Squatt commented.

"What?' she asked. **It was me**, she heard her son say. _Well, that's good, his abilities are coming back_, she thought. Then, **Why?** **Something weird happened when we shook hands and I saw him about to be teleported**, came the response. The woman's breathing hitched. If Zordon had gotten his hands on Jason...**You did the right thing**, Rita assured him.

"Goldar! Get to the training arena, now!" she called. In the Command Center, Zordon and were trying to determine what had happened to Jason.

"Alpha, get Jason here…**now**," Zordon said dangerously.

"I'm sorry, but the computers are no longer picking him up. It's like he just disappeared!" Alpha exclaimed. Oh, he hated it when his master was upset. Zordon fumed, but unfortunately, he couldn't do anything to otherwise show his displeasure. Back in the arena, Jason was desperately trying to contact the Command Center, but only got a squealing chirp each time.

"I'm sorry, but your communication device won't work in here," a voice said. Jason turned around and felt his face pale. This had just gone from bad to worse. He was now all alone with…

"Goldar," he whispered.


	7. What Jason Learned

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, here's more.

Fallingstar22: Thanks, here you go.

Kellybird: Hey, I was wondering where you were. Thank you, I'm glad you think so. I'll try.

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to go ahead with the idea. I use some stuff that was in the first draft of "Dragon's Path" with Crowned Tiger's permission. I'll be gone for about four days starting tomorrow, so this is the last update on this story until then.

Jason's breathing quickened and he subtly tried to look for a way of escape.

"Relax, Red Ranger. I'm not going to hurt you," Goldar said. _No, he's just going to kill me_, Jason though to himself as he reached for the morpher clipped to the back of his pants. However, his hands only reached air. _Where's my morpher?_ he wondered, his panic rising.

"Drop something?" Goldar asked, lifting up his morpher. _Please. Don't make me fight for it_, he silently begged. He wasn't sure if his body could handle a fight in his condition. Then, to the Ranger's surprise, the griffin tossed it to him. _What the heck?_ he thought. Had the griffin read his mind or something? But even if he had, why would Goldar give him back his Power Morpher? "I must apologize for your abrupt arrival in our training area. Trigon had to make a split-second decision," the griffin continued.

"You mean, Tommy," Jason corrected. "What'd you do to him? What kind of spell did you place him under?" he spat out. Goldar had to fight the urge to attack the boy. _Remember, Zordon told him and his friends that we're evil. Of course he's going to react this way_, he reminded himself.

"He's under no spell, Red Ranger. We have done nothing to him," the warrior soothed. However, Jason didn't look convinced. And yet…Goldar had made no move to attack him.

"Why am I here?" he asked.

"Like I said, Trigon had to make a split-second decision," Goldar answered.

"What do you mean?" Jason asked. _Why am I playing his game?_ he wondered.

"Because Zordon was preparing to teleport you," Goldar replied.

"So you decided to take the chance to kidnap me," Jason spat out. _Why are you even talking to him? Attack! Get yourself out of here!_ his mind screamed at him. However, something inside of him told him that he needed to hear what Goldar was saying.

"No, Red Ranger. It was a rescue," he corrected.

"What do you mean?" Jason asked. Before Goldar could respond, Rita materialized in the arena and Jason tensed up even more.

"Relax, Red Ranger. I'm not going to hurt you, but I **do** want to show you something," she told him, and then they were all teleported out of the arena. To Jason's surprise, they rematerialized in what appeared to be a conference room.

"Why am I here?" Jason demanded. _And why haven't you guys tried to destroy me yet?_ he wondered.

"Because believe or not Jason, I wanted to help you," Rita said as a dog-like creature walked in. "However, I understand you probably don't believe me since you believe that what Zordon told you of me is true."

"You can try to lie to me all you want Rita."

"I figured you'd think that, so Goldar and I have prepared a little show for you. And then you can decide if we really mean you and your world harm or not," Rita said gesturing for Finster to begin the film as a video screen magically appeared in front of Jason and then turned it on. Meanwhile, Zordon and Alpha had contacted the Rangers and told them about Jason's disappearance.

"What could Rita want with him?" Trini wondered.

"I'm not certain, Rangers. Alpha and I are doing all that we can to rescue him," Zordon stated. _And then once I have him, I'll re-establish his connection to me so that he won't stray and then do the same to these other pathetic humans_, he thought.

"Oh, hold on, Jase. We'll get you back," Kimberly sighed worriedly. Back on the Lunar Palace, Jason was silent as the images appeared on the screen. _Be careful. Don't let them fool you_, he cautioned himself. He saw Rita and Zedd's army on a desert planet fighting someone, presumably Zordon and his people. He cringed at the amount of bloodshed that appeared on screen and Rita had to stop herself from turning the images off. The Red Ranger needed to see them if he was to learn the truth. Jason watched with a sense of sick fascination as the battle continued. A warrior was struck down, his mouth frozen in a silent scream. One of the fighters pulled out a gun and pointed it a member of Rita and Zedd's army. _No. I don't want to see this!_ Jason's mind screamed. However, he couldn't look away. It was almost as if he had been compelled to watch the screen. Suddenly, the images shifted and now they appeared to be showing some kind of slave camp. _What's this? Are they gonna gloat about their victory? How would that help convince me of their lies about Zordon?_ Jason wondered. He watched in silence as the conquerors yelled at their prisoners in a foreign language. The prisoners cowered and reacted in fright whenever their captors stomped up to them. Jason's eyes clouded as he watched the citizens get punched, kicked, and otherwise assaulted. The scene shifted again. This time it was just one prisoner and one captor. The prisoner said something in an imploring tone and the other person just laughed derisively and then raised something in the air. Jason's eyes widened when he realized that the person was holding a whip. _No, no, no, no, no, no! Bad! Bad! Whip bad!_ his mind screamed. However, the only outward sign of his distress was his Adam's apple wobbling slightly. The whip came down with a mighty crack and Jason tried not to tense. The motion was repeated and for a moment, Jason saw another whip crashing down. Goldar started in surprise when he heard the Red Ranger inhale sharply. However, he couldn't blame him. The images **were** horrible. Perhaps he was finally seeing Zordon for what he really was. As several minutes passed, more images of similar nature were shown. Throughout the entire thing, Jason continually cringed and his eyes darkened with pain more and more. As she showed the Ranger the images, Rita kept a subtle eye on him. She'd have to be careful not to overdo it. After all, the point of this whole slide show was to reveal the truth about Zordon, not traumatize the boy. Suddenly, he let out a moan and his whole body went rigid. She stepped towards him in concern. What image had caused this reaction? She turned to the screen. One of the captives had been tied to a tree with his hands above him and his shirt removed. _Oh, yes. That __**was**__ a nasty day. I suppose he's empathizing with prisoner_, Rita thought to herself. Someone came forward and their whip came crashing down on the man's bare back. Jason swallowed nervously. _No, no, no, no! I don't want to see this!_ he thought. However, he wasn't going to ask for them to turn it off. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction of hearing him beg. The whip came down again and again. Jason started to shake and shut his eyes tightly.

"No," he whispered in a strangled voice. Then, it dawned on Rita. The Red Ranger wasn't just sympathizing with the man in the video. He was having some sort of flashback! With an immediate wave of her hand, the images disappeared.

"Red Ranger, it's all right. It's off,"' the witch said as she approached him. "I'm sorry. It was not my intention to frighten you," she added, kneeling down and running her fingers soothingly through his hair. Jason's head shot up in surprise at the motherly tone. _What? Why would she care about my wellbeing?_ he wondered. _Because she's trying to feed you lies about Zordon and being concerned about you is part of the act_, he answered himself. For an answer, he just jerked his head away from her touch and glared at her. Rita sighed. This was going to be harder than she thought. Meanwhile, Zedd and Scorpina had arrived back at the palace.

"Where is everyone?" he wondered. "Squatt, Baboo! Where's my wife?" he questioned, seeing the vampire-like creature along with his best friend, a short and fat alien.

"And Goldar?" Scorpina added.

"In the conference room with Jason," Squatt answered.

"Who?" Scorpina asked, a look of confusion on her face.

"The Red Ranger," Baboo replied.

"Ah," Scorpina said. In the conference room, Rita watched Jason with some concern. Then, she made a decision.

"That's enough for now, Goldar. He needs some time to digest this," she declared.

"Empress, we can't leave him here. His friends will get worried, if they haven't already," Goldar pointed out.

"Hmm. You're right," Rita agreed. "I'll have Trigon take him back to Earth," she determined. Then, she closed her eyes. For a moment, Jason thought she had fallen asleep, but was proven wrong when he heard footsteps. Unnoticed, Jason's right hand clenched into a fist when he saw Tommy. _I knew it! He's the one who brought me here!_ he thought.

"What do you need?" Tommy asked.

"We need to take Jason back to Earth," Rita told him.

"But what if Zordon tries to teleport him again?" Tommy protested.

"I don't like it, either, Trigon, but as Goldar pointed out, his friends are most likely worried about him," Rita replied.

"I guess that's true," Tommy said, sounding a bit dejected. _They don't act like he's under a spell. Maybe she ordered him to sound like this?_ Jason thought. But that didn't make sense. Why would Rita pull such an elaborate stunt? What was she up to? however, before he could voice the questions Tommy walked up to him, and placing a hand on his shoulder, sent the boy back to Earth.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," he muttered, not realizing that there was a very good reason for his feeling of trepidation.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Rita and Zedd's talk to Tommy about the Olivers will come later. I haven't forgotten about it.


	8. Plot And Talk

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, here's more.

Fallingstar22: Thanks. Yep. He's **very** confused. Well, keep on reading and see.

Kellybird: Thanks. Good. You're supposed to, lol.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with it. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon.

After Jason was returned to Earth, he immediately went home, where he hurried to his room and locked the door. Then, he messed up his hair with hands. What was he going to do? He didn't know what to think. He couldn't get the images he had seen out of his head. _But maybe that's what Rita wanted_, he thought to himself. After all, if he doubted Zordon and Alpha, he'd be useless to them. He blew out a breath. He wished he could come up with an answer. Meanwhile, the other Rangers were still in the Command Center. Suddenly, there was a loud series of beeping and the Rangers all turned towards the noise.

"Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi! I've found him!" Alpha exclaimed.

"Where is he?" Kimberly wondered.

"He's at home," Alpha answered. _He must not have believed whatever Rita tried to tell him. Which is good_, he thought to himself. This way, Zordon didn't have to tip his hand just yet.

"So, he's okay," Zack sighed in relief. _Well, relatively speaking_, he thought. There was no telling what his old man could do to him, but they couldn't help with that problem…he didn't want it.

"It doesn't make sense. Why would Rita just let him go?" Trini wondered.

"She's right. There's no beneficial merit to their decision," Billy added.

"I am uncertain, Rangers. You will have to watch Jason very closely. It's possible that they have placed him under some sort of spell," Zordon cautioned.

"So, what do we do?" Zack wondered.

"Return home, Rangers. Alpha and I will monitor the situation," Zordon replied. The Rangers nodded and did as they were told. Once the teens were gone, Alpha laughed maniacally.

"Ohhh! Rita messed up this time! By kidnapping the Red Ranger, she has driven them further into your control!" he noted.

"Yes," the wizard mused. _She must be getting desperate_, he thought. And that would work in his favor. The humans would naturally gravitate towards him if they felt threatened. Meanwhile, Zack, Trini, Billy, and Kimberly each tried to act normally around their parents even though inside they were each freaking out. Finally, each Ranger went to their room _What do we do? What if Rita __**does**__ have him under a spell? How do we save him?_ Kimberly wondered as she paced around in her room. _This is most unsettling. I do hope that we're able to acquire the upper-hand on our adversaries_, Billy thought as his mind wandered from his school assignment for the umpteenth time. _I don't like this. With that new Ranger on the loose, we can't afford to have a Ranger down_, Trini mused as she executed a Tai Chi move in a fruitless effort to calm her nerves. _Oh, man! This is not cas! I don't know if I can fight Jason if I have to!_ Zack thought to himself as he flopped onto his bed. What none of them knew was that they were being watched by Zedd and Rita.

"Well, they seem peaceful for the time being, though I wouldn't put it past Zordon to attack them when they least expected it," Zedd commented.

"Yes, I was just thinking the same thing," Rita agreed. Then, their gaze turned to Tommy who had returned to the Oliver house and was eating an early dinner.

"Tommy, is everything okay?" Stephen asked in concern.

"Yeah, everything's fine," he assured.

"Are you sure, Sweetie?" Melinda checked. Tommy nodded.

"Of course. I'd tell you…I promise," he replied. The couple nodded. They'd have to accept that. They couldn't push him…especially now that he seemed to be relaxing around them. A few months ago, he wouldn't have said this much to them, and they didn't want to jump the gun by pressing him for details if he had had a bad day. The conversation officially dropped, Tommy resumed eating. _What am I going to do about this? Will I have to give them up?_ he wondered. He hoped not. He was finally happy and he didn't want anything to ruin it. But then again, how could he go against his biological parents? He mentally shook the thoughts away and finished his dinner.

"May I be excused?"

"Of course." Tommy then got up from the table and walked into his room. **Trigon, we must talk. Please report to our Conference Room**, he suddenly heard Rita say. Tommy's brow furrowed. He had just been in the Lunar Palace. Why would he be called b ack so quickly? The Conference Room? That couldn't be good. **As you wish**, was his only response. He chanted a quick spell that would make the Olivers think that he was still in the room whenever they approached it and then teleported himself to the required room. Rita and Zedd watched as their son entered the room.

"What's goin' on?" he asked suspiciously, reminding the duo of a caged animal that could and probably **would** strike if provoked.

"Easy, Trigon. You're not in trouble here," Zedd soothed. _Okay, okay, calm down. They haven't proven to be like anybody else before the Olivers...__**yet**_, Tommy thought to himself.

"That's right. We just need to discuss your living arrangements," Rita added.

"I'm not leavin' the Olivers," Tommy insisted, his old dialect coming out. Over the last few days, they had learned through observing their son that his human life had been hard and didn't trust easily, though he hadn't explained why, and that side of him would become more prominent if he felt threatened.

"We expected as much. They have been kind to you," Rita stated in a placating manner.

"So, what's there to discuss?" Tommy queried, a bit sulkily. _I don't believe this. Why can't I get comfortable with anybody?_ he wondered. As Trigon, he knew Rita and Zedd could be trusted, but his memories as Tommy kept him from getting too close. That and he was feeling frustrated that the Rangers still appeared to be completely loyal to Zordon, even with what Jason had learned.

"How do you want us in your life?" Rita asked. Tommy stared in shock. He hadn't expected **that** question.

"Tommy?" Zedd asked. Tommy could only stare.


	9. Punishing Memories

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, here's more.

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. Concept is inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with it. This chap has another scene that was in the first draft of "Dragon's Path" and I'm using it with Crowned Tiger's permission.

Tommy stared at them. What was he supposed to say? What did they **want** him to say?

"Tommy?" Rita asked.

"I-what do you want me to say?" Tommy wondered.

"The truth, son," Zedd answered. _Why would he want us to tell him what to do? This is a choice that only he could make_, he thought. Did it have something to do with his life before joining the human couple?

"It's gonna take me a while to trust you completely. I mean, with my memories as Trigon, I know you can be trusted, but-" Tommy's voice trailed off.

"Your human memories are telling you not to trust anybody," Zedd finished. Tommy nodded.

"Yeah," he said.

"That's perfectly understandable," Rita commented. She smiled at him and the boy took that as an invitation to leave and went to the room that Rita and Zedd had set up. _Maybe I should get back. That spell's not going to last forever_, Tommy thought. And yet…something was urging him to stay up here. But what? He blew out a breath and then went out to the balcony. Seeing his mother's telescope, he walked up to it. He adjusted it to his eye level and zoomed it in on the Earth.

"Before I forget again, Zeddy, we need to talk," she commented.

"What is it my dear?"

"When we had Jason here, I inadvertently discovered something disturbing."

"Did Zordon do something to the boy?"

"No. I believe whoever his guardian is has been abusing him." Zedd's eyes widened and Rita explained to him what had happened. Meanwhile, Tommy was pacing in his room. _Maybe I should get back. That spell's not going to last forever_, he thought. And yet…something was urging him to stay up here. But what? He blew out a breath and then went out to the balcony. Seeing his mother's telescope, he walked up to it. He adjusted it to his eye level and zoomed it in on Earth. Back on Earth, Jason had just changed into his sleeping attire-a red tank top and a pair of old sweatpants. His mind flashed back to the images Rita had shown him. They had been pretty horrible. _But how do I know that they didn't just manipulate things? Maybe they have technology that allows them to switch images around. Maybe __**they**__ were the ones doing the destroying_, he thought to himself. Jason sighed again. That was a lot of maybes. His eyes clouded. _Man, I hope that wasn't Zordon and his people. Please don't let what they're saying be true_, he thought to himself, looking at his morpher. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to take it if he really was being lied to. Then, something banged against his door, breaking his reverie. His doorknob rattled.

"JASON! YOU OPEN THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW, BOY!" his father bellowed, banging on the door. Jason quickly headed for his window, slid it open, and quickly hopped out. _Oh, man. Thank goodness we only have one story_, he thought to himself. It certainly made things a bit easier. He silently made his way through backyard, trying not to make any noise. The front yard was no longer an option. Dad had seen to that. He slowly crept through the yard. Hearing nothing, he quickened his pace slightly. Suddenly, an alarm rang. _Dang! He beefed up the motion detectors!_ Jason thought and immediately started running towards the fence. If he could just make the fence, he'd be fine. A few seconds later, the alarms stopped and he heard approaching footsteps. However, he didn't look back. That was how you got caught. Seeing the fence coming up, Jason bit his lip. Hopefully hopping over wouldn't hurt too much. Jason grabbed the top of the fence and-let out a cry of pain as something bit sharply into his hands, creating deep gashes and causing him to let go and fall back onto the ground. _He spiked it!_ he thought, feeling the blood run down his palms. A few seconds later, the man reached him.

"Get up. You're not hurt," he said. With soft gasps of pain, Jason did as he was told.

"How you gonna explain this, huh?" Jason challenged. He wasn't stupid. He knew that home alarms of any type were often connected to the local 9-1-1 authorities. _He won't be able to wiggle his way out of this one._ _They'll put a stop to it_, he thought.

"I called the department and told them it was a false alarm. An animal had tripped it running through our yard," Curtis replied, grabbing Jason's wrist. Jason's heart sank. No one was coming. "Now, then…you know how I feel about running away," he continued, his grip tightening. _No! Please!_ Jason's mind screamed. However, he was unable to stop his father from dragging him to the shed. The man opened the door and then dragged his son in.

"Dad, Dad, wait. Please. Please, I'm sorry. I won't-I won't run again. Please, I'm sorry." The pleas fell on deaf ears as the man shoved his son to the back of the shed and then strapped Jason to a row of hooks on the back wall that were used for hanging tools up, making sure to bind his right wrist first. Once Jason was completely shackled, Curtis grabbed a whip and snapped it in a downwards motion, letting it strike Jason's chest. From the moon, Tommy heard the faint cries of pain. Brows furrowing in concern, he zoomed in closer. To his surprise, Jason was tied up in a shed as a man-presumably his father-struck him repeatedly with a whip. Tommy's face paled and he staggered to the side, his back hitting the balcony. _No_, he thought. Before he could stop it, a memory came rushing back. _Ten-year old Tommy cowered in the corner, his arm over his face protectively. He cried out as the whip stung his flesh. _Rita walked out to the main room and was surprised to see her son leaning against the balcony, an expression of pure terror on his face.

"Trigon?" she asked, stepping closer. He didn't answer. "Trigon?" she prompted, touching his shoulder. He jumped.

"No more, please! I'll be good!" he exclaimed. _What? He must've been having some kind of flashback_, Rita thought.

"Hey, hey, hey! Whoa. You're okay," she assured.

"Mom?" he asked softly. Rita's breath caught in her throat. That was the first time he had called her that.

"Yes, it's me, Son," she assured. "What happened?"

"He's being hurt," Tommy answered barely speaking aloud. "Like I was…before the Olivers." Tommy absentmindedly wrapped his arms around himself. "All the answers are the wrong ones. They want you to be something you're not. And because you're not…they punish you…they keep punishing you." Rita came up to her son as he drew in a ragged breath and his expression became more pained.

"Tommy, focus on me. Focus on being here. you're slipping into another flashback," Rita said as she brought her hands to Tommy's face forcing him to look at her. "You're safe. And you know Zedd and I would've stopped it had we known where you were or what was happening," she continued.

"They-they-would tell me to do things, but-it-it was always wrong-it was like-they wanted me to fail," Tommy said as tears started to form. "They just wanted an excuse…" He sniffled as she wiped away his tears.

"Tommy, your father and I won't let that happen ever again. Parents don't normally do that to their children," Rita reminded him. He nodded. She was right. Not **all** of the places he had been in had been bad, but enough of them had. The boy finally pulled away.

"What am I going to do? Jason doesn't deserve what's happening, but he's probably too afraid to admit the truth…either that or he's been threatened into silence," he surmised, running his fingers through his hair.

"We'll get this figured out, Trigon. I promise you. And I'll teleport Jason here again if I have to," Rita assured him. She paused.

"Want to go to school tomorrow?" Tommy nodded.

"I've got a feeling that he's gonna need someone who knows what he's going through." Then, he transported himself back to Earth, leaving Rita alone with her thoughts.


	10. Betrayed

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Jeremy Shane: Thanks. Here's more.

Kellybird: Hey, I missed you! Thanks. Yeah, well, read on and see. Here you go.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with the idea. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. Bold underline are the Rangers' dino and animal spirits talking.

The next morning, Tommy entered the halls of Angel Grove High, his mind racing. What was he going to do about Jason and the others? How could he get them away from Zordon? And how could he get Jason to admit to the abuse that was going on? At least the situation with the Olivers had been taken care of. Well, sort of. He had talked to them that morning, saying that he had found his birth parents who wanted to be in his life. That had raised some questions from the couple, mainly, did **he** want them in his life and did he want them to relinquish custodial rights to his natural parents? He had told them that he didn't know, that he hadn't expected to find the couple and wasn't sure he'd live with them, though he **was** curious about them and the Olivers said that they would be fine with whatever he decided. Though he still wasn't sure what he wanted, knowing that his adoptive parents weren't mad at him gave him some peace of mind. Meanwhile, Jason had meet with Kimberly, Zack, Trini, and Billy and had told them in quiet tones what had happened to him.

"You mean they didn't try to attack you or anything?" Kimberly asked.

"That's what I'm saying," Jason confirmed. "And what they showed me…it was horrible," he continued.

"But there's no way Zordon would try to take over the world, he's been trying to save it," Trini reminded them. _Well, at least Zordon's concern about Jason being placed under a spell was unfounded. He wouldn't be acting like this if he was under a spell_, she thought.

"Yes, it must be some sort of stratagem that was devised to disorient the team in order to make us ineffectual to Zordon," Billy agreed.

"Huh?" everyone asked.

"It's probably a plot to confuse us so that we're useless to Zordon," Trini explained.

"Oh," the others said.

"Maybe, I just don't know. I mean, if they wanted to hurt or kill me, they could've done it," Jason said. Then, the warning bell rang and the Rangers walked to homeroom, unaware that Tommy was close behind and staring with concern at Jason who was wearing a pair of black jeans and a red shirt. When they sat down, Jason winced, trying not to put his body against his desk. _Man, my whole body's sore_, he thought. There was no way he was going to be able to hide it. Kimberly glanced at Jason in concern. There was something wrong. She just knew it. Jason wasn't walking normally. _Man, what'd his dad do to him?_ she wondered. However, she didn't get a chance to talk to him until after homeroom was over. The girl grabbed his arm and pulled him to a secluded corner in the hall. Seeing this, Tommy, Trini, Billy, and Zack stopped and waited.

"Is she seriously going to do this?" Tommy asked.

"Yep," the others chorused. _This is not going to end well_, the Green Ranger thought. However, he kept his mouth shut and turned to where the others were looking. Kimberly's eyes flashed as she faced Jason.

"Okay, Jase. Spill. What happened?" she demanded, trying to keep her temper in check. _I can't believe he's still putting up with this trash_, she thought.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he responded. _Why can't she just leave this alone? It's none of her business_, he thought.

"That's garbage. You're obviously in pain. What did he do to you?" she shot back. Jason looked around furtively and motioned for her to keep her voice down. But Kimberly no longer cared if someone heard them. Jason had been hiding this long enough. With a growl of annoyance, she stepped forward and started pulling at his shirt. The boy tried to stop her, but was cut off by a wave of pain, giving her the opportunity to lift up his shirt. Her eyes widened when she saw the angry lashes.

"What the heck! Jason!" she exclaimed. At this, people turned to stare at them. What was going on? They had never seen Kimberly and Jason argue before.

"Kim, will you be quiet?" Jason asked furiously.

"No, I'm not going to be quiet! Jason! He is going to kill you! Can't you see that? Why are you protecting him?" Kimberly asked angrily, unaware that they were starting to draw a crowd.

"He's my father!" Jason shouted. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the whole hallway went silent. The Red Ranger's face paled. _Dang it. Now everyone knows_, he thought. He looked at the crowd, who was staring at him in shock. _I-I-I can't-I can't…_ his thoughts trailed off and he took off towards the entrance.

"Jason!" Trini exclaimed, trying to stop him, but failing.

"I got him," Tommy assured and hurried after him. In the Command Center, Alpha and Zordon had witnessed the whole thing.

"So, the stupid human is letting himself get beat is he?" Alpha asked. _Well, that would explain his quick obedience_, he thought.

"Yes. Make a note of this, Alpha. We may be able to use it for our advantage," Zordon instructed. _Perhaps I can tell him that I witnessed the fight via the viewing globe and offer him some accommodations when he doesn't feel safe, or I can cast a spell on his father so that he'll report to me_, he thought letting out a musing noise. Those were certainly ideas worth looking into. Then, "Alpha, prepare the next phase of my plan." Up on the moon, Rita and Zedd had also witnessed the scene.

"This is terrible. I should've gotten him out of there as soon as Tommy told me what he had seen yesterday," Rita moped.

"Calm down, my dear. You didn't know this would happen. Besides, we both know Zordon would've twisted things around," Zedd comforted and then turned his gaze back to Earth, where Tommy and Jason were talking.

"How could she do this? Now everyone knows," Jason said. _And can I really trust him? He __**did**__ transport me to the Moon Palace_, he thought. Then again, he always thought it was good to keep his friends close and his enemies closer. At least this way, he could make sure Tommy didn't try to do the same thing to anyone else.

"Hey, maybe this is a good thing. Someone may tell one of the teachers and they'd have to call the police," Tommy told him. _That's what happened with me once. __Okay, granted, I wasn't really wanting to talk about some guy's hands all over me, but at least I got out of there_, he thought. A memory started to crop up, but the boy pushed it back. Jason let out a sarcastic laugh.

"He'd just shut it up, man. He **is** the police," he responded. "I mean, he's not a sergeant or high ranking or anything, but he's got connections," he continued.

"Oh, jeez," his friend sighed.

"Listen, thanks for listening and calming me down, but…I just-I gotta be alone right now," he said.

"Okay, I'll think of something to tell the teachers," the other boy said.

"Thanks, man," he responded. They slapped five and once again, the images of a tyrannosaurus and a dragon swam before Jason's eyes. However, this time, Tommy saw the same thing.

"What?" they chorused.

"What was that?" Jason wondered.

"I don't know," Tommy answered. **Mother?** he asked. **Yes, Trigon?** Rita asked. **Jason and I saw something weird. A tyrannosaurus and dragon fighting side-by-side, but Jason doesn't know that I'm the Green Ranger. What's going on?** he wondered. **I'm not sure. Just act normally for now**, Rita instructed. Jason stared at Tommy who hadn't said anything for several minutes, though it became obvious he was communicating with someone. _He must be telepathically linked to Rita_, he surmised. Then, he hurried back into the school. He had to warn the others.

"Ah, Mr. Scott. Just the man I was looking for," a voice said, grabbing his arm.

"Mr. Caplan," Jason noted nervously.

"I understand that you and Ms. Hart had a bit of a ruckus here a few moments ago," he commented. Jason began stammering. How could he explain? Meanwhile, in the Command Center, Zordon and Alpha had also noticed something amiss.

"Zordon, every time Jason and Tommy touch, Jason's connection to you and the Morphing Grid weakens," Alpha noted.

"It is the Dragon and Tyrannosaurus. Eons ago, they were brothers in arms. We must stop the reconnection at all costs," Zordon declared.

"But how?" Alpha wondered.

"Bring Jason here. We'll sever his connection to the tyrannosaurus," Zordon answered.

"Right away, Zordon," Alpha responded. He went over to the consoles and pressed a few buttons. Almost instantly, Jason found himself being teleported and Mr. Caplan's eyes widened. What had just happened? _Oh, I'm seeing things. I need a vacation_, he thought to himself. When he landed, he found himself in a room surrounded by white walls. _Where am I?_ he wondered. His hand went to his communicator, but before he could activate it, a beam of light and fire came from the ceiling and enveloped him. Jason screamed as a burning sensation entered his body. What was going on? It was like he was being ripped to shreds. A few seconds later, Zordon's image appeared above him.

"Zordon?" he asked in fear and confusion. Was he seeing things?

"I won't allow your connection to me or the Morphing Grid be weakened, Red Ranger. When I'm through with you, your mind and body will belong to me," Zordon said. The pain came again and Jason screamed. From deep within, there was roar of agonized fear. Back at Angel Grove High, Zack, Kimberly, Billy, and Trini all gasped and then let out their own cries of pain. A vision of the tyrannosaurus swam before each of their eyes. One-bye-one, they managed to excuse themselves and ran out to the halls.

"What's going on?" Zack wondered in a pain-filled voice.

"I don't know, but Jason's obviously in trouble," Kimberly replied in the same tone.

"Let's get to the Command Center. Maybe Zordon will know what to do," Trini suggested.

"But what about what Jason informed us about?" Billy protested.

"No way. Rita was lying to him. We need Zordon," Kimberly stated and the others nodded in agreement. Then, they looked around and seeing that they were clear, teleported.

"Rangers," Alpha said in surprise. _What are they doing here?_ he wondered.

"Zordon, there's something wrong with Jason," Trini reported.

"Yeah, the tyrannosaurus is in so much pain," Kimberly added.

"We have received no contact from the Red Ranger indicating distress," Zordon answered. _I didn't expect them to realize anything was amiss. Perhaps their connection to each other is stronger than I thought_, he mused. Well then, he'd just have to tread carefully. Suddenly, there was a muffled yell of pain.

"That's Jason!" Billy exclaimed and the Rangers headed towards the sound.

"Rangers, halt! I didn't want to alarm you but we noticed anomalies in the Red Ranger's bio-signature and were forced to transport him to a cleansing chamber to help him. If you go in there now, you'll only disturb the process," Zordon cautioned. The scream came again.

"I'm goin' in," Zack determined and he once again started towards the sound, the others at his heels. Instantly, Alpha went to the consoles and pressed several buttons. Immediately, the four Rangers were encased in four power grids.

"Alpha?" Trini asked. _What's going on?_ she wondered.

"Alpha, what are you doing?" Kimberly questioned, fear creeping into her voice.

"You mangy humans were told to stay put and I'm going to make sure you obey," Alpha snarled and the Rangers gasped in surprise at the tone. What no one knew was that Tommy had seen Jason disappear and had immediately transported himself back to the moon.

"What do we do? Zordon could be doing anything to him," he worried, pacing back and forth.

"You use a Power Coin just like the other Rangers," Scorpina commented.

"So?" Tommy asked.

"Of course! You'd be able to teleport in undetected," Squatt realized.

"No! Absolutely not! Too dangerous!" Rita exclaimed.

"Mother, I have to! We can't just leave him there," Tommy determined.

"Unfortunately, my dear, he's right," Zedd agreed. Rita sighed.

"I know," she agreed. "Will you at least morph so you'll have some protection?" she requested.

"Of course," Tommy agreed.

"I'll go with him," Scorpina offered.

"Excellent, Scorpina," Zedd approved. Tommy closed his eyes and concentrated on his costume. Instantly, the suit covered him.

"Oh, you might need this," Goldar said, and handed the Green Ranger a green dagger.

"The Dragon Dagger. Perfect," Scorpina approved.

"We'll be back as soon as we can," the Green Ranger promised. Then, he and Scorpina teleported out of the palace. Back in the secret room at the Command Center, Jason let out another cry as the fire sensation continued up his body.

"Zordon, please!" he implored. _Make it stop! Make it stop!_ he begged. This was worse than anything his dad had ever come up with. In the Command Center, the other Rangers winced as they heard their friend's cries becoming louder.

"Alpha, please let us out!" Kimberly begged.

"Not until Zordon's done," Alpha replied. Suddenly, the alarm blared and the Green Ranger and a woman adorned in golden amor appeared in the room.

"Release them…now," the woman commanded, brandishing a boomerang weapon. Alpha went to attack her, but she summoned energy from her weapon and zapped the robot. "Release them," she commanded again.

"Don't you do it," Zordon instructed.

"The two buttons on the right side of the console! Press 'em!" Billy shouted. The woman followed his gaze and pressed the indicated buttons. Immediately, the power grids disappeared. There came another scream.

"Jason!" Zack, Kimberly, Billy, and Trini exclaimed.

"What's the coordinates of that room?" the Green Ranger demanded, grabbing Alpha.

"SILENCE!" Zordon roared. The teens gasped. There came another scream, this one louder and more pain-filled. Something deep inside the Green Ranger roared. **Brother!** he heard the dragon yell. **Find him**, the Green Ranger instructed. Almost instantly, he found himself in a room with white walls. In the middle of the room, Jason was being hit with a beam that was intermingled with light and fire. The Green Ranger played his Dragon Dagger. A green beam of light flowed from the dagger and hit the other beam. The Green Ranger continued to play the dagger and little by little, the beam attacking Jason dissipated. Jason moaned and slumped to the ground. The Green Ranger gathered the boy in his arms, concentrated on getting back to the other Rangers, and almost instantly landed back inside the Command Center.

"Jason!" the others cried, rushing to him.

"We've gotta get out of here," the Green Ranger stated. "Scorpina, take care of the tin can," he ordered. The woman took out a boomerang weapon and fired it at Alpha. The robot barely had time to react as energy from her weapon latched onto him and blew him to the side. Alpha moaned and his mainframe shut down. Right before slipping into darkness, the robot saw the Rangers teleporting out.


	11. Endangered Red

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Kellybird: Yep. Well, you'll just have to read on and see.

JediMasterSarah: Thanks. Why, thank you. Hopefully, you'll enjoy this chapter as well.

Jeremy Shane: Thanks. Here's more.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with it. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. Bold is telepathic speak.

As soon as they landed in the Lunar Palace, the Green Ranger and Scorpina took Jason to the infirmary, laying him on a table and yelling for Finster who hurried into the room.

"My word! What happened?" he gasped, seeing the Ranger.

"We don't know," Scorpina answered.

"He was being blasted by a beam of fire and light. It seemed to be hurting him some how," Tommy answered, removing his helmet.

"I'll run a scan on him at once," Finster promised. "Do I need to tend to the other Rangers as well?" he checked.

"No, they're just upset and confused," Tommy replied. "I'll go talk to them. I wear a costume like theirs, so they'll most likely be more receptive to me," he continued.

"Good thinking," Scorpina stated. As Finster and Scorpina started the scan, Tommy walked back out to the main area of the castle, where the other Rangers were.

"Hey, how are you guys holding up?" he asked.

"I can't believe Zordon did that," Kimberly said. _He was like a father to me. Why would he turn on us?_ she wondered.

"What was he doing to Jason? It felt like he was being ripped apart," Zack commented. _This is unreal. It can't be happening_, he thought.

"Yes, a most disturbing feeling," Billy agreed. _We were lied to. How did we not catch the falsehood?_ he wondered.

"What about Jason? Can you guys help him?" Trini queried. _I can't believe I just asked that_, she thought.

"Finster's tending to him," Tommy assured. In the infirmary, the scan had just been completed.

"Well?" Scorpina asked.

"Traces of the tyrannosaurus are somewhat weak. It would appear that Zordon tried to sever the connection," Finster reported.

"WHAT?" Scorpina yelled. 'HAS HE COMPLETELY LOST IT? THAT WOULD'VE KILLED HIM!" she exclaimed.

"Hey, loud," Jason complained as he carefully sat up.

"Sorry," Scorpina apologized.

"I-I can't believe he did this to me. What am I going to do?" Jason wondered.

"First, we're going to figure out how to re-strengthen your connection to the tyrannosaurus. After all, you won't be of much use to your friends in this condition," Finster stated.

"Right," Jason said. _Aw, man. Dad's gonna flip when I get home_, he thought. How was he going to explain this? "Listen thanks for the patch-up, but I gotta get back home," he continued, starting to get off of the table.

"You're in no shape to teleport yourself anywhere," Scorpina reminded, standing in front of him.

"But you don't understand, I've **gotta** get home! My dad's gonna flip!" he shouted, moving past her. However, his knee buckled and he would've fallen if Scorpina hadn't caught him.

"Like I said, you're in shape to teleport yourself anywhere and I **certainly** wouldn't teleport you back in this condition," she stated.

"No, you don't understand! You have to send me back! He'll freak out if learns I've skipped school again!" Jason yelled, causing the other Rangers and Rita to run in. _Can't they understand? He'll kill me if he finds out_, he thought.

"You didn't exactly skip, man. You were kidnapped," Zack pointed out.

"But I can't tell him that!" Jason exclaimed.

"And you're **not** going back to that house," Tommy insisted. Jason turned to him.

"What are you talking about? I have to," he protested. Tommy stared at him in shock. _Please tell me I didn't act like this myself_, he thought.

"He'll kill you," the boy reminded.

"I need to go home," came the response. Tommy let out a sigh and glanced at Rita. **We can't hold him against his will**, he reminded. **I know**, she responded.

"Are you sure about this, Red Ranger?" the woman asked.

"Yes," Jason answered.

"All right, then," Rita said. She said a quick spell of protection and then pointed her wand at him and mere seconds later, he found himself back on Earth, near hear his house. In the Command Center, Alpha had long since come back on line and had been tracking the Rangers. Suddenly, the alarms blared.

"YES! Finally! One of them is back on Earth!" he celebrated as he turned on the viewing globe. "Jason," he sneered.

"Retrieve him at once," Zordon instructed. Alpha pressed the teleportation button on one of the consoles. However, to his surprise, nothing happened.

"What!" he asked angrily.

"Rita must've placed a protection spell on him, preventing us from teleporting him here," came the response. Alpha banged his fists on the consoles. _Drat it! If we don't get him here right and bend him to our will, we won't have a way to destroy Earth_, he thought. Jason walked into his house.

"Dad, are you here?" he asked. There was no answer. _Huh. I guess he's still at work. That's probably a good thing_, he thought. Then, with a sigh, he sat down on the couch and spread out. His face grimaced in pain as he hit one the previous lashes on his back and he shifted, trying to get comfortable. However, it was to no avail. With a sigh, he finally just turned over and lay on his stomach. _Ah, much better_, he thought. Now maybe he could get some rest. He certainly needed it after everything that had happened with Zordon. He closed his eyes and started to drift off to sleep. However, it seemed like he had just fallen asleep when he was jerked up violently.

"YOU SKIPPED SCHOOL AGAIN!" Jason began stammering as he tried to fight against his father, but his position on the couch left him little leeway to effectively protect himself. Curtis grabbed his son, hauled him to his feet, and then threw him across the room. Jason moaned as he hit the wall. What they didn't know was that the commotion had been heard and various neighbors were calling the police. Curtis strode near Jason again.

"Get up, boy. You're not hurt," he growled. On the moon, Tommy and the others had become aware of the whole thing.

"I'm going down there. I can't let this happen," he declared, finally turning away from the telescope. With that, he prepared to teleport.

"Tommy, Tommy, think. If you just suddenly appear, there's going to be questions and Zordon could use it for his advantage," Scorpina said hurriedly as Goldar looked through the telescope.

"But we can't just leave him there!" Tommy protested.

"Yeah, Tommy's right," Kimberly agreed. _What are we going to do? Jason's liable to get killed down there_, she thought.

"We may not have to. Look, Empress," Goldar urged. Rita walked up to him and peered through the telescope to see a police car barreling down the street towards Jason's house.

"The human authorities are on their way," she reported.

"The police? But his dad's cop," Zack protested.

"Yeah, what if he just shuts it up again?" Trini asked.

"I can make sure that doesn't happen," Scorpina said and instantly transformed herself into a human police officer. Then, she went down, using a motorcycle that was magically provided by Rita. Jason cried out in pain as something in his chest snapped. _Rib! Definitely a rib!_ he thought. Curtis kicked Jason in the head, eliciting a moan from the boy. He was kicked again. Then-he heard the sound of the door being broken and mercifully, darkness claimed him.


	12. Finally Free

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, here's more.

Gonewiththerain09: Well, keep reading and see.

Kellybird: Thanks. Well, then, you're just going to have to keep reading, aren't you?

Yob3: Thank you. I'm glad you like it. That's good.

Fanficrulez: Thanks, I'm glad you like the story. Here you go.

JediMasterSarah: Yes, he is. Well, read on and find out. Thank you. I will.

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. Plot inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with it. Bold is telepathic speak.

Nurses and doctors talked frantically as they hurriedly wheeled Jason down the corridor.

"He's got multiple contusions and a couple of broken ribs, some defensive wounds…looks like someone beat the heck out of him," a nurse reported.

"His name's Jason Lee Scott, son of Curtis Scott," another nurse said.

"Curtis Scott the cop?" came the gasp. Had he actually done this to his own son? Hearing someone talking, Jason's eyes fluttered open. _Wha-what's going on?_ he wondered. He heard someone talking in a distorted voice, and then once again slipped into unconsciousness. When he woke up, he found himself in a hospital room. _Okay, time to go_, he determined. There was no way he was staying here. He started to sit up.

"I wouldn't advise that," a voice cautioned and a nurse with blonde hair and hazel eyes started to push him back gently.

"I have to. I can't stay here," he responded, once again trying to sit up.

"Mr. Scott, you're going to be just fine," the nurse assured.

"No, you don't understand. I have to-" he started to say.

"I understand, just fine, Mr. Scott. But if you don't stop moving around, you're ribs are going to be broken again," the nurse interrupted. Just then, a doctor came in.

"Good, you're awake," the man approved. "You had us all a bit scared," he continued. "Now, Mr. Scott, due to your injuries, there will be a couple of police officers coming in here to ask you a few questions," he told the boy.

"No! There's no need for that! There's nothing wrong!" Jason cried, jerking up. _They're just gonna shut it up again! He's already told them lies!_ he thought frantically. He tried to leave the bed, but the nurse and doctor intercepted him. Suddenly, a stab of pain went through Jason's body and he let out a cry.

"Easy, son. No one's going to let anything happen to you. You're safe here," the doctor soothed, sharing a worried look with the nurse. Meanwhile, at the Angel Grove Police Department, Curtis was sitting in an interrogation room.

"Look, this is all just a big misunderstanding," he insisted.

"Right," a woman with black hair and a dark complexion drawled. Really? He actually thought that they'd believe that?

"Look, I got a call that Jason had skipped school again and I was asking him why he was being so irresponsible," Curtis said.

"Did that include smashing his ribs?" the woman asked hotly.

"Just who are you again?" Curtis asked.

"Sabrina Chavez," she answered.

"Right. A newbie," Curtis sneered. _Figures. Guess I'll just lay it on extra thick_, he thought. "Look, sweetheart, my son and I haven't been getting along lately, he's been acting up, skipping classes, mouthing off. Now I've been trying to set him straight, but so far, I haven't had much luck," he told her. "Rick will vouch for that," added, pointing to a blonde-haired man.

"Curtis, even **I** have to admit, this looks bad," Rick told him. "By the time the paramedics got him into the ambulance, he was unconscious. What happened?" he questioned. Before he could answer, another detective walked in. Like Rick, he was blonde-haired, but had blue eyes.

"Tony, what's the word on my son?" Curtis asked with fake concern.

"Rick, Sabrina, can I have a word with Curtis?" he requested.

"Yeah, sure," Rick agreed, standing up and heading out. Sabrina hesitated, and then followed him. _**Empress, how is he?**_ she asked. **According to human doctors, resting fairly comfortably given his injuries**, came Rita's response. _**Good**_, came the response.

"Tony, how's my son?" Curtis asked again.

"Why don't you tell me what happened?" Tony questioned, ignoring his friend's question.

"I got a call from the school that Jason had skipped classes again, and I when I came home, he was on the couch. We had a little argument that got out of hand and I guess someone heard us and overreacted," Curtis responded. Tony didn't say anything, but looked at the man. "What?" Curtis asked.

"I just got off the phone with a doctor from Angel Grove Community Hospital," Tony replied.

"And?" Curtis prompted. Again, the man didn't answer. "Tony, what's wrong with you? You're looking at me like you don't even know me," he commented. Meanwhile, in the Angel Grove Community Hospital, a couple of officers-a man and a woman-had walked into Jason's room.

"Mr. Scott, I'm Officer Mike Leland, and this is my partner Heather Granger," the man introduced the two. "Do you want to tell us what happened?" the man continued.

"Nothing. Nothing at all," Jason responded quietly. Heather came around the side of Jason's bed and knelt down so that they were eye-level.

"Jason, I want you to listen to me very carefully. We want to help you, but we can't do that if you don't tell us the truth," she stated.

"What'd my father tell you guys?" he countered. _What lie am I gonna have to tell?_ he wondered.

"That's not important. What's important is that you tell us the truth," Heather answered. _I don't want him telling us what he thinks we want to hear. I want the truth from him_, she thought.

"What'd he tell you?" Jason asked again.

"Jason, we know Curtis Scott is your father," Mike said. Jason let out a sigh and turned his head away. "And we also know that he's also had you lie for him in the past. It made it easier for him to shut this up, right?" he questioned. Jason looked at him in surprise.

"Jason, it's going to be different this time. We promise," Heather added. Jason sighed.

"He thought I skipped classes," he told them. "He thought I had skipped and he went berserk," he continued.

"What really happened?"

"I got kidnapped by a new enemy of the Power Rangers. They got me back fairly quickly, but I had been injured and they had thought it was best to leave me at home so that I could heal properly."

"And he started in on you?"

"Yes." Back at police station, Curtis sputtered with anger as Tony began reading him his rights.

"Tony, you can't be serious!" the man protested. Seeing that he was being placed under arrest, Sabrina quickly went off to a secluded section of the station and then teleported herself back to the moon.

"It's done, Empress. Curtis Scott won't lay a hand on Jason ever again," Scorpina reported, transforming herself back to normal.

"Good work, Scorpina," Rita approved. She then turned her attention back to Earth. Now she just had to figure out a way to stop Zordon once and for all.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

A lot of personal drama in this chap, but I promise you, the Ranger side of the drama's not done yet. After all, Zordon's not gonna let them go **that** easily. The next chap will skip ahead a couple of weeks to help move the story along.


	13. Kidnapped

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, here's more.

Megagalvatron12: Thanks, I'm glad you like it. Here's more.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with the idea. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own characters you don't recognize. To help move the story along, I've skipped ahead two weeks. I only own characters you don't recognize. Uses some lines from the series.

TWO WEEKS LATER

Jason nervously walked up the stairs of Angel Grove High. _What if they all start staring and whispering again?_ he wondered. By now, news of what Curtis Scott had done to Jason had been made public, as was the news that the Olivers had graciously taken him in at Tommy's request. Almost as if by thinking of him, he had called out to him, the Green Ranger appeared at his side.

"You're gonna be okay, Bro," he whispered.

"Dude, they all know," came the tight response.

"You're gonna be okay. We're all with you," his friend assured. Jason nodded, and the two boys walked to homeroom, where Kimberly, Billy, Zack, and Trini were waiting for them. Jason's breath caught when he saw all their friends.

"Hey, buddy. Saved you a seat," Zack said, pointing to a chair that was in the middle of the group. Jason smiled. By placing him in the middle of them, the others had ensured that no one would bother him. The two sat down.

"How's the arm?" Tommy quietly asked Kimberly in concern.

"It's okay. We all knew that Zordon's top generals would be tough," Kimberly responded. After Rita and Zedd's rescue of the Rangers, Zordon had immediately called on one of his generals, a being Travox known as to battle them.

"Yeah, but…you scared me," he told her. The other Rangers looked at each other and shared knowing grins. Then, the teacher came in and they had to drop the subject. As the day progressed, Jason tried to ignore the stares and whispers, with some success, but not much. Right before lunch, Jason went to his locker.

"So Jason, you're supposed to be this big martial artist, right?" a boy, Chris Stevenson, asked, coming up beside him.

"Your point?" Jason asked, opening his lockers.

"So, how come you didn't just fight your father? I mean, surely a big strong martial artist wouldn't put up with that kind of thing," Chris taunted.

"Hey, why don't you just shut up?" a voice asked. Jason turned to see Bulk, who walked up with Skull at his side. Jason stared in surprise. _Am I hearing things? Is Bulk really coming to my defense?_ he wondered. "You think it's easy admitting that the person who's supposed to love and protect you is the hurting you? You think you can just automatically turn off your emotions or fight against them?" he continued. Chris stammered. "Why don't you just stop being a waste of space and get lost?" the boy finished. Chris took off.

"Thanks," Jason said in surprise.

"Don't worry about it. I just can't stand it when people act like they know what they're talking about when they have no clue," Bulk responded.

"You sound like you have your own experience," Jason commented.

"Not me, my cousin," Bulk answered with a shake of his head. "Look, I know we're not the best of friends, but…if you need anything…"

"Thanks," Jason said, and the trio went to lunch. What they didn't know, was that Alpha 5, Zordon, and his generals, Travox and Kressler, were watching them from the Viewing Globe.

"Ooooh! I can't wait until we can destroy those Rangers for dare turning on you!" Alpha exclaimed.

"Patience, Alpha. We will take care of them very soon. Travox and Kressler know what to do," Zordon responded.

"Yes, my lord," Travox agreed with a cruel smile. Zordon's plan was going very well. By the time he made his move, the Rangers wouldn't know what hit them. He just had to bide his time until the Rangers let their guards down. Then, he could strike. They continued to watch the Rangers. Back at Angel Grove High, the Rangers finished lunch and headed for their next classes as Zordon and his two generals watched through the globe. When the school day was finally done, each Ranger headed home.

"Now," Zordon commanded. Instantly, the two generals made themselves invisible and teleported to Earth. They were to kidnap all but two of the Rangers Zordon had chosen. It didn't matter which ones, just as long as Rita and Zedd got the message that they couldn't protect the stupid Earthlings. Travox followed the Red Ranger and Kressler followed the Blue and Yellow Rangers who had opted to walk together. Kressler continued to trail the Yellow and Blue Rangers until they were out of sight of other people. Then, he made his move. Billy and Trini cried out in shock as they felt themselves being teleported. When they landed, they found themselves in a dimension that appeared to consist of nothing but a white void.

"Where are we?" Trini wondered in fright.

"I am uncertain, but our predicament certainly indicates that Zordon's come up with a new stratagem," Billy replied. Without warning, they were thrown back and they each landed in a metal cage. They shook the bars, trying to get loose, to no avail.

"What's going on?" Trini asked fearfully.

"It must be Zordon," Billy surmised. Meanwhile, Travox was following Jason. Suddenly, the boy felt a beam hit him and with a cry, he disappeared from Earth. When, he landed he found himself inside what appeared to be a locked room with no windows or doors. _Where am I? How'd I end up here?_ he wondered. Instantly, he turned to his communicator, which Billy and Finster had reprogrammed to tap into the moon and not the Command Center.

"Jason to Lunar Palace. We've got an emergency situation," he reported. However, all he got was static. He tried to reach the others for several minutes before giving up. Then, without warning, he was suddenly thrown against the wall and chains appeared, shackling him to the wall. _What? What's going on?_ he wondered, starting to struggle. He had to get free! Then, his face paled as he heard a booming laugh. _No. This can't be happening_, he thought. It was Zordon.


	14. Escape And Punishment

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Yob3: It is. Just keep reading. Everything is explained.

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, here's more.

Kellybird: Thank you. Here's more, hope you enjoy this chapter as well.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with the idea. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own characters you don't recognize. Zordon's telepathic speak to his minions is in italics.

Jason struggled against the restraints when he saw Zordon's image.

"Let me go!" he shouted angrily. _I have no idea where I am, but I know it's not the Command Center_, he thought to himself.

"You had your chance, Jason. You and your friends could've ruled by my side. Now you'll just be eliminated," Zordon told him.

"We're not going to let you get away with this!" Jason exclaimed. Zordon laughed.

"But I already have. And not even Rita and Zedd can find you in this dimension," he taunted. Then, his image disappeared. _Huh? Where'd he go?_ he wondered. This was not good. In their own dimension, Billy and Trini had each tried to break their cages, but to no avail.

"Billy, what are we going to do? I mean, we can't contact any of their others or teleport, we can't morph…Zordon's got us," Trini said, speaking in a low tone so that Alpha and Zordon couldn't hear her.

"I fear that I am at a loss as to how we can better our situation," Billy admitted in the same voice. What they didn't know, was that Rita and Zedd had seen their disappearances.

"Drat it! I can't believe I didn't see this coming!" Rita fumed as Finster immediately began a sector-by-sector search for them.

"Calm down, my dear. We'll rescue them," Zedd comforted. However, he was also concerned. He then, activated his own communications device as Rita contacted Tommy telepathically. On Earth, Zack and Kimberly heard the summons and answered it individually.

"What's up?" Zack asked.

"Report to the moon at once," Zedd told them. The two did so.

"What's going on?" Kimberly asked.

"Yeah, why did Mom contact me?" Tommy added.

"And where are Jason, Billy, and Trini?" Zack finished.

"Zordon has taken them. We're not sure where they were transported, but Finster's looking for them now," Rita answered.

"Zordon's not going to stop targeting us until he kills us, is he?" Kimberly asked.

"Hey, don't worry. We'll find them, and then we'll destroy Zordon," Tommy comforted, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Oh, man. Why is he doing this? How did he get so power hungry?" Zack wondered.

"That is something we have often wondered ourselves," Rita admitted.

"He-he had been like a father to me," Kimberly whispered. _I can't believe I was so stupid_, she thought to herself.

"Oh, girl," Zack said sympathetically, reaching out to squeeze her hand. Ever since her parents divorce a few years ago, she had felt completely abandoned…especially when her dad had moved out of Angel Grove. _Don't worry, Kim. I'll make him pay for hurting you like this_, the Black Ranger promised silently. Meanwhile, Travox and Kressler were in Angel Grove, destroying buildings by slashing their swords at them as well as letting out energy blasts from the weapons. The two generals laughed diabolically. _I'm so glad Emperor Zordon called. I needed something to destroy_, Travox thought to himself. Suddenly, Goldar and Scorpina appeared. Goldar let out a roar as he lunged at Travox and Scorpina launched herself towards Kressler.

"Where are the Rangers?" she snapped. Kressler just laughed.

"You'll never find them. Emperor Zordon has them hidden away," he taunted. What they didn't know was that someone was doing a live report on the battle.

"This is Amy Kendall with Angel Grove Channel 9 News. Remarkably enough, the aliens who once destroyed the city are now protecting it in the Power Rangers' absence," the woman stated. Then, she went on with the report. On the moon, Kimberly, Zack, and Tommy watched anxiously.

"We have to help them," Kimberly stated as Goldar and Scorpina were knocked down.

"It's much too dangerous for you. Though we've severed your connection to Zordon, he may still be able to teleport you to a dimension of his choosing," Rita cautioned.

"That's a risk we'll have to take," Zack determined.

"Zack's right, Mother. We can't just leave them alone," Tommy agreed.

"All right, then. You three be careful," Rita warned. "And remember what we taught you about calling on your powers," she added.

"It's not the Powers or the Morphing Grid itself that's bad…just Zordon," Kimberly said, remembering what they had told her the first time she had refused to use the morpher.

"Now then, it's morphing time!" Zack called.

"Dragonzord!"

"Mastodon!"

"Pterodactyl!" As soon as they were morphed, the Green, Black, and Pink Rangers jumped into the battle.

"Traitors!" Travox snarled.

"Oh, wow! Now the Power Rangers are here, and they are helping their one time enemies to beat back this new threat," Amy reported. Then, Travox fired a bolt of energy in their direction. "Amy Kendall signing off!" the woman said hurriedly and she and her camera man fled the scene. The Pink Ranger faced Travox, an alien being that was of medium build, had a black body that was crisscrossed with yellow and silver lines. He leapt through the, brandishing his sword. The girl pulled out her Power Bow and fired. Travox cried out in pain and landed on the ground in a heap.

"Nice shot!" Scorpina complimented. Kressler, a tall alien being with a yellow and purple body, roared and tackled the Green Ranger. Then, it summoned electricity from its body and transferred it to the Green Ranger, who let out a groan, which segued into a cry of pain.

"Tommy, hang on!" the Black Ranger called and he quickly converted the Power Ax into Canon Mode and fired on the alien. Kressler screamed and rolled away. Goldar, Scorpina, and the Pink and Black Rangers quickly ran to the Green Ranger.

"Are you okay?" the Pink Ranger asked, as she and Scorpina helped him up.

"Yeah. It was just a bit of a jolt," the Green Ranger replied.

"What do you say we give 'em a jolt of our own?" the Black Ranger suggested.

"I'm game," Goldar agreed.

"Combine weapons!" the Black Ranger instructed. With that, the Dragon Dagger, the Power Ax, the Power Bow, Goldar's sword, and Scorpina's boomerang were placed on top of each other. Then, a single beam of energy flowed from the weapons and hit the two beings, knocking them back.

"We'll be back," Travox snarled, and he and Kressler disappeared and then rematerialized in the Command Center.

"You fools. You let them chase you away?" Zordon asked.

"Forgive us, our liege. The teenagers are stronger than they look," Travox groveled, as he and Kressler bowed on a knee.

"And given the fact that they still have their morphers-" Kressler's comment trailed off into a cry of pain as Alpha used the computers to deliver a shock wave to the two beings.

"I do not tolerate failure. You know this quite well," Zordon reminded them.

"Forgive us, Emperor," Kressler begged in a pain-filled voice. Finally, Alpha halted the assault.

"Get out of my sight. I will call for you when you're needed again," Zordon told them and they disappeared. In the white dimension, Billy and Trini glanced at each other. They had to get out of there before Zordon turned his wrath on them. But how? They had each tried the bars to no avail. Meanwhile, Goldar, Scorpina, and the Rangers had returned to the moon.

"Trigon, are you all right?" Rita checked anxiously.

"I'm fine, honest," Tommy assured.

"That was quick thinking on your part to combine your weapons, Zack," Zedd complimented.

"Thanks, but we still have to rescue Billy, Trini, and Jason," Zack commented. Meanwhile, Alpha had teleported Billy and Trini some food. They watched as the robot's image appeared in a hologram.

"Here's some food…not that you deserve it, traitors," he snapped and then the image disappeared. _Well, at least they're feeding us_, Trini thought. Though, maybe it wasn't such a good thing. _There must be some way we can gain the upper hand and then engineer an evasion of Zordon's wrath_, Billy thought. But Alpha would never let them out of their prison while they refused to work for him.

"Wait a minute. That's it," Billy said, barely containing his excitement.

"What's it?" Trini questioned. Had the Blue Ranger figured something out?

"We're escaping, just follow my lead," he whispered.

"Um, okay," she agreed.

"Zordon, Alpha, we realize the error of our transgression! We desire to help you!" Billy called, causing Trini to look at him in surprised alarm. _What is he saying?_ she wondered. Then, she caught his look and understood. _Of course, this way, hopefully, they'll release us and we can escape_, she realized.

"Yes! Zordon, let us help you conquer Earth…Master," she added. She gasped as Zordon's image appeared.

"Are you two being sincere, young ones?" Zordon asked.

"Yes, Master," Billy and Trini chorused, kneeling on a knee and bowing their heads. Almost immediately, they were teleported to the Command Center. Before Alpha knew what was happening, the two Rangers had jumped up, grabbed him, pried open his back where his programming was, and yanked out the wires, ripping them from the robot's body. Then, they teleported themselves to the moon.

"Billy! Trini!" Kimberly cried relief.

"How'd you escape?" Zack wondered.

"We pretended to defect and when Alpha teleported us back to the Command Center, we ripped out his wiring and then teleported out," Trini answered.

"Good job. That should slow Zordon down a little," Tommy complimented.

"Yeah, but we still have to find Jason," Kimberly reminded them.

"Yeah," Trini, Zack, Billy, and Tommy sighed. In the Command Center, Zordon was fuming. _TRAVOX! KRESSLER! GET IN HERE!_ he thundered. Almost immediately, the two reappeared.

"You called, Emperor?" Kressler asked.

"The Blue and Yellow Rangers have escaped," Zordon answered.

"What is your command?" Travox asked.

"I want one of you to go and lure them back out…destroy the whole city if you have to," Zordon stated.

"I'll go, my liege," Kressler volunteered.

"Do it," Zordon instructed and the being disappeared.

"What about Alpha?" Travox questioned, glancing at the downed robot.

"He let the humans get the drop on him. He deserved his fate," Zordon answered. "Get rid of him," he added. Travox went over to the consoles and pressed a button. Moments later, Alpha 5 disappeared in a burst of white particles.

"And what about the Red Ranger?" Travox asked.

"Make him pay for the other Rangers' escape," came the command.

"As you wish, Emperor," the being responded and then teleported itself to the room the Red Ranger had been placed in. Jason struggled against his bonds. Then, he tensed when he saw Travox and his fight increased.

"Yes, go ahead and fight. That'll make your punishment all the sweeter," Travox sneered, conjuring a whip. Jason's eyes widened when he saw the instrument. Seeing the reaction, Travox's lips curved into a terrible smirk.

"This frighten you, boy?" he sneered, and then cracked the whip in the air, causing the Red Ranger to jump and wince. _No. No, please_, he thought to himself. The whip cracked through the air as Travox stepped closer. Jason increased his fight to get free, only to have the bonds cut into wrists. The whip came down, hitting Jason on the chest with a resounding THWACK! Jason grunted at the impact. The strikes came again and again, each eliciting a groan or a grunt of pain from the Red Ranger. Travox's eyes flashed. _So, he thinks he can hold out against me, does he?_ the creature thought. Well, he'd prove the human wrong. There was another SNAP! as the whip came down on Jason's chest again…harder than before. Jason's face twisted in pain. Travox continued his actions, making each strike harder than the last one until…the room rang out with Jason's screams.


	15. Rescuing Red

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Delysia: Exactly, he's been conditioned to think that everything's his fault. I'm glad you're enjoying the story. Hope you like this chap as well.

Kellybird: Thanks, here's more.

JediMasterSarah: Yep, wow, cool. Well, read on and find out. Again, read on and see. Thanks, hope you like this chap as well.

Jeremy Shane: Thanks, here's more.

Fallingstar22: That's fine, as long as you enjoyed your holiday. Yeah, I know what you mean and I'm the one writing it. We'll see.

Megagalvatron12: Thanks, well, we'll see what happens. Yep. That's probably something you never thought you'd say about Alpha, lol.

DISCLAIMER

Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with the idea. Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. I only own the characters you don't recognize. For future reference, when Tommy and Rita contact telepathically, Tommy's words will be bold and underlined, while if it goes into Tommy's thoughts, it'll be regular italics, but if Trigon's thinking something, italics will also be bolded. Tommy's vision is in italics.

It was several hours later when Travox's torture finally stopped. Jason moaned as his shoulders and head sagged. What was he going to do? Travox grabbed Jason's chin and jerked it up, forcing the Ranger to face him.

"I can convince Emperor Zordon to spare you…if you'll pledge your loyalty to him," he sneered.

"Never," the boy weakly insisted. Travox tightened his grip.

"Are you sure about that? Emperor Zordon **will** eventually destroy your friends. By pledging loyalty, you'll ensure your survival," he stated. Gathering his strength, Jason did the only thing he could think of: he spit in the alien's face. Travox backhanded him.

"Just for that, when I destroy you…it will be slow," he hissed. Meanwhile, back on the moon, Finster was looking over Tommy, Kimberly, Billy, Trini, and Zack trying to distinguish how deep their spirit bonds were.

"I don't understand. How is it that we can feel Jason?" Kimberly wondered.

"The spirits-dino and otherwise-they must be connected," Tommy surmised.

"That is correct," Zedd summoned. "The spirit of the dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures bonded with each of you and in turn, mirrored your friendship and relationships to one another," he continued.

"Which would explain why every time Jason and I touched, we saw a dragon and tyrannosaurus fighting side-by-side," his son stated.

"Exactly," Zedd confirmed.

"So, then, from the amount of pain we just felt, I think it's safe to say that we need to get him out of there-wherever he is-…**fast**," Trini stated.

"Well, yeah. But how are we going to find him?" Zack wondered.

"The connection. As stated, the Tyrannosaurus and Dragon spirits have already executed a few instances of consociating, so perhaps we can use the dragon spirit as a means of discovering Jason's current location," Billy suggested.

"Okay, once more in English?" Kimberly asked.

"Simply put, we may be able to locate Jason by having Tommy's dragon spirit reach out to Jason's tyrannosaurus spirit," Trini translated.

"Precisely," Billy confirmed.

"I'll do it," Tommy volunteered. "My magic is strong, I can use that to help me locate him," he continued.

"A wise strategy," Zedd approved.

"Wait a minute. Wouldn't Zordon be able to use the connection both ways?" Kimberly asked in fright.

"Oh, I hadn't thought of that," Tommy admitted.

"We can do a spell that will make you undetectable," Rita assured. Immediately, Rita and Zedd began chanting in a foreign language. Kimberly, Zack, Trini, and Billy watched as a protective green, black, and red mist enveloped him before disappearing.

"You're covered," Rita assured.

"Just focus on the Red Ranger. The dragon will do the rest," Zedd told him. Tommy closed his eyes and brought the boy to the forefront of his mind. It was a few minutes before the Green Ranger finally found the Red Ranger. _Tommy made a small noise of surprise when he found himself in some type of room. Hearing a small_ _moan, he turned to see Jason shackled to a wall._

_ "Jason," he gasped, his eyes widening when he noticed the angry lashes on his friend's chest._ _Hearing the gasp, Jason looked up. _

_ "Help me," he whispered hoarsely._

_ "Hang on, Bro. Help's on the way," Tommy assured him. _ Tommy gasped as the dragon returned to his body.

"Trigon, what is it? You're shaking," Rita commented.

"We need to get him out of there…**now**," Tommy insisted.

"Did you see where he was?" Billy asked.

"It's another dimension. It-it was weird. It was as if as soon as I entered, I knew the coordinates," Tommy replied and then told Rita and Zedd the information.

"As I recall, the dragon was always good at recognizing places," Zedd stated.

"So how do I teleport myself there without Zordon knowing?" Tommy wondered.

"You're not going alone," Zack declared and Kimberly, Billy, and Trini nodded in agreement.

"We can't risk Zordon capturing you too," Tommy told them.

"But you might need some back up," Trini pointed out.

"I agree with Trini," Rita stated. _I don't want my son going in there alone_, she thought. She had just gotten him back and she didn't want to lose him again.

"Okay, I'll accept help from **one** of you. Any more than that is too risky," Tommy agreed.

"Fair enough," the others accepted.

"I'll go. I mean, I know I'm not that strong of a fighter, but-" Kimberly began to say.

"You're a great fighter," Zedd told her. Just then, Goldar came running in.

"Empress! Kressler's in the downtown district and he's tearing it apart!" he reported.

"We have to stop him," Billy declared.

"Okay, Kim and I will go free Jason, and the rest of you go take care of Kressler," Tommy instructed.

"Right," they all agreed. The teens morphed and Goldar and the Black, Blue, and Yellow Rangers materialized on Earth while the Green and Pink Rangers landed in the dimension where Jason was being held. The Green Ranger leapt through the air, brandishing his Dragon Dagger. Travox cried out in pain as the weapon hit him. He turned around and-was felled back by a shot from the Pink Ranger's Power Bow. With a moan, Jason looked up. _Wha-they found me? How'd they find me?_ he wondered. The two Rangers ran to their friend.

"Just hang tight, buddy. We'll have you out of here in a sec," the Green Ranger assured.

"He looks really bad," the Pink Ranger noted. _**I'll kill him**_, came the thought. _Right behind you_, was the response. Travox smirked.

"Well, well, well. Looks like I get to take care of three of you pathetic humans at the same time," he stated. Then, he conjured his sword and charged at them. The Green Ranger pushed the Pink Ranger out of the way and then blocked an oncoming blow. The Pink Ranger somersaulted towards Jason, pulled out her Blade Blaster, and then shot at his shackles. With a moan, Jason fell to the ground. The Pink Ranger quickly caught him.

"Hold on, Jase," she said. He just moaned. Hearing the sound, the Green Ranger glanced at the two. _Okay, we gotta get out of here now_, he thought to himself. _**He's gotta pay firs**_t, was the response. Underneath his helmet, Tommy's eyes darkened as he powered up his Dragon Dagger. Then, he shot a bolt of electricity at Travox who fell to the ground in a heap. Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, the Green Ranger flipped through the air, and landed next to Jason and the Pink Ranger. Then, they teleported out. Once they had rematerialized on the moon, Jason was rushed to the infirmary where Finster and Scorpina began tending to him.

"Uh, Sweetheart, I think Goldar and the other Rangers could use a bit of help against Kressler," Zedd commented.

"Let's do it," the Pink Ranger declared. With that, the two Rangers teleported themselves to the battlefield. In the infirmary, Finster and Scorpina applied some disinfectant to the wounds, causing Jason to cry out.

"Can't we give him something for pain?" Scorpina asked.

"All we have are medicines from Keslon, which are all too strong for the human body," Finster replied. "I am sorry, Scorpina. I know that you'd much rather be out there fighting," he apologized.

"Hey, it's not very often that I get to put my medical training to use," Scorpina replied. Meanwhile, in downtown Angel Grove, Goldar and the Rangers were fighting Kressler and a swarm of strange beings.

"What are these things?" the Black Ranger wondered, wincing from a kick.

"Whatever they are, they are efficient adversaries," Billy responded as he was knocked back.

"Stupid Craylons, fight!" Kressler shouted at the beings. Then, the next thing he knew, an energy bolt from the Dragon Dagger and Goldar's sword knocked him back. Presently, the Craylons disappeared and the other Rangers joined Goldar and the Green Ranger.

"I say we finish this guy," the Green Ranger stated.

"Right!" everyone chorused. They put their weapons together and fired. Kressler's eyes widened and tried to dodge the attack, to no avail. With a scream, Kressler disintegrated into dust. From the Command Center, Zordon watched in displeasure at Kressler was destroyed. _I don't believe this! He was one of my top generals and he can't even beat a group of measly teenagers?_ he fumed. Well, at least he still had Jason. He'd have Travox destroy him. _Travox, destroy Jason_, Zordon instructed. _I am sorry, Emperor. I cannot…he was rescued_, came the reply. Zordon's eyes flashed. Rita and Zedd. That was the only explanation. Fuming, he called Travox back to the Command Center before breaking their link. He needed to re-strategize. He had obviously underestimated these pathetic humans. Back in the Lunar Palace, the Rangers and Goldar had gone to the infirmary to check on Jason. Tommy's breath caught in his throat when he saw the angry marks that crisscrossed Jason's chest, covering old wounds. _Dang. What-what'd they do to him?_ he wondered. his breathing quickened. He remembered being like that…so broken, nearly dead. _Tommy moaned as he tried to make sense of the frantic voices around him. What was going on?_

"_He didn't do anything! He's just a kid!"_ The last words echoed in his mind.

"Trigon?" Gasping at the hand on his shoulder, the Green Ranger pulled away in fear. "Trigon, what is it?" Rita asked.

"Sorry. Flashback. I'm all right," Tommy replied.

"Are you sure?" Rita questioned softly and Tommy nodded.

"Yeah," he answered. "How's Jason holding up?" he wondered.

"He'll survive," she answered.

"May I see him?" Tommy questioned.

"Later. Right now, he needs to rest," Rita replied. "Which I would advise you to do as well," she stated. Tommy nodded. Then, he went to his room. _Oh, man. What are we going to do?_ he wondered. Plus, he couldn't get what he had seen out of his head. _Man, what more are they gonna put Jason through?_ he wondered, lying down on his bed and staring at the ceiling. How come the boy couldn't get a break? He closed his eyes and soon, was in a deep sleep.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I'm going to try to make the next chapter the last chapter, but no guarantees.


	16. Last Fight

SHOUT OUTS/ANSWERS

Fallingstar22: Thanks. Here you go. Well, read on and see.

Brankell: Thanks. Well, I thought it'd be about time.

Jeremy Shane: Thanks. Here's more.

Kellybird: How very astute of you. Here's the next chap.

DISCLAIMER

Power Rangers belongs to Haim Saban and Nickelodeon. Inspired by "Dragon's Path" by Crowned Tiger who has given me permission to run with the idea. I only own characters you don't recognize.

The first thing Jason was aware of when he came to was being in a great deal of pain. The second thing he was aware of was that he didn't feel as empty as he had been after Zordon had attacked him with that fire beam. He moaned and slowly started to sit up.

"Oh, thank goodness! You're awake!" he heard a voice exclaim.

"And in pain, but feeling good…which is…odd," Jason answered, as he was helped to sit up.

"The pleasant feeling would be the re-established connection between you and the tyrannosaurus," the voice said. Jason looked to see a dog-like creature.

"Uh…Finster, right?" he checked and the creature nodded. "Thanks for everything," he said.

"Scorpina helped," Finster replied.

"Who?" Jason asked.

"Me," a female voice answered. Jason turned his head to see a woman in golden armor, much like Goldar's. "We had to tend to you but we couldn't give you anything for pain. All we had was alien medicine and those are **way** too strong for a human body," she continued apologetically.

"That's-that's fine," Jason wondered. "What are we going to do about Zordon? He'll send someone for us," he added.

"You just get yourself back up to full strength before worrying about that," Scorpina advised.

"So, what's the deal with our dino spirits or whatever? Why were Tommy and I seeing a dragon and tyrannosaurus fighting side-by-side every time we touched?" Jason wondered. Scorpina let out a huff. _Of course Zordon wouldn't tell them anything about the powers! How else would be able to keep them under control?_ she thought.

"Oh, that blasted wizard!" Finster exclaimed, echoing Scorpina's sentiments.

"I'll go tell the others that you're awake, and then we'll get everything explained," Scorpina said.

"Fair enough," Jason agreed. Then, the woman walked out of the infirmary and went to look for the others. Presently, she found Goldar in one of the halls.

"Scorpina, is everything all right?" Goldar asked.

"The Red Ranger's finally awake," Scorpina replied.

"Ah, yes. I'll go get the others," Goldar said. Then, he went to the various rooms that Rita and Zedd had set up for the Rangers and called them to the infirmary, telling them that Jason was awake. Immediately, the teens hurried towards the room, followed closely behind Rita and Zedd who had become curious at the griffin's actions. _Oh, good. I was worried when he fell unconscious_, Rita thought to herself when she heard that Jason was awake.

"Jason! Thank goodness you're okay!" Kimberly gasped, giving him a hug.

"Hey, I wouldn't leave ya," he assured. Then, "So, what's the deal with our dino spirits?"

"As I told your friends, the spirit of the dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures bonded with each of you and in turn, mirrored your friendship and relationships to one another. For example, Jason, you are seen as the big brother among your group and so the tyrannosaurus took over that role for the Triceratops, Mastodon, Saber-tooth Tiger, and Pterodactyl. Tommy's coin is connected to the spirit of the dragon which was at one time a brother to the tyrannosaurus, and when you two met, your spirits recognized each other and went to connect," Zedd explained.

"But how come this never happened to the rest of us, I mean, you know, **before** we started seeing the tyrannosaurus in pain and stuff?" Kimberly asked.

"I suspect it could be because on a subconscious level, your spirits recognized Zordon as a danger and only made a connection to those who wielded their power and only came out when Zordon tried to sever Jason's connection to the tyrannosaurus," Rita replied.

"And since Tommy has no connection to Zordon, the tyrannosaurus recognized an ally and reacted accordingly," Billy surmised

"Precisely," Rita confirmed.

"If the spirits of the powers that we hold start to come out, does that change us in any way?" Trini wondered nervously. _I'm not sure I'll be able to handle it if I start turning into something_, she thought to herself. Jason, Kimberly, Zack, Billy, and Tommy turned to the monarchs. _That's actually a good question_, Kimberly thought.

"Not in a physical sense. You and your friends will just become more connected to one another and your relationships will deepen," Rita assured. Trini let out a sigh of relief, as did the others.

"As this happens, you'll also find that you can do extraordinary things with your powers," Zedd added.

"Really?" the teens asked and Zedd nodded. _Hmm. That'd be kind of cool_, Kimberly thought to herself.

"What do we do about Zordon? I mean, we just destroyed one of his top generals. He's not going to let that go," Trini pointed out.

"She's right. He'll most likely launch an extremely offensive attack as retribution," Billy agreed.

"Yeah," Kimberly nodded. Even she understood that Billy was saying that Zordon would retaliate for Kressler's death.

"He might be planning something even as we speak," Zack surmised.

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure all of us can handle it," Scorpina declared.

"Even us?" Zack?" asked, causing the others to look at him in surprise for his timidity.

"Hey, if you weren't up to this, the Power wouldn't have chosen you," Scorpina said. Meanwhile, at the Command Center, Zordon frowned in displeasure.

"We have lost Alpha and Kressler to Rita and her subjects. We must destroy the teens," he declared.

"But, my Liege, they destroyed Kressler. How can I hope to fight against them as well as Rita and Zedd's army on my own?" Travox asked carefully.

"Call upon Linux. He will help you," Zordon responded. Immediately, Travox put out a call to the being. After hearing the situation, Linux, a green reptilian creature with black scales and two long, thin red horns, appeared in the Command Center.

"Emperor Zordon, what an honor to be called by you," Linux stated, dropping to his knees and bowing his head. "How may I serve you, Master?"

"There are five human teenagers that have turned against me. I want you and Travox to destroy them," Zordon replied. _What? How dare they!_ Linux thought in rage.

"Show me these humans, my liege and it will be done," he promised.

"Turn to the viewing globe," came the command and both generals did as they were told. Linux's features curled into a sneer as he saw them fighting.

"You gave them the Powers of the Rangers?" he asked in confusion. _Why would he do that?_ he wondered.

"Yes. I had told them that they were saving the world. Unfortunately, the arrival of Zedd and Rita's son Trigon opened their eyes to the truth," came the response. "Now they must be eliminated so we can take the powers back and give them to those who would be more loyal."

"Let's get started," Linux declared.

"Yes. Go! Go and destroy!" Zordon ordered and the two beings transported themselves down to downtown Angel Grove, brought out their swords, made themselves grow, and then started blasting various buildings. In the Lunar Palace, there was a loud buzzing sound and everyone ran to the foyer of the castle, and Kimberly looked through Rita's telescope.

"Kimberly, what's happening?" Rita asked.

"Downtown Angel Grove's being blown to bits by Travox and some gross-looking green reptile," Kimberly reported.

"It's time to go to work," Jason declared.

"Hold on, you just woke up and you're not going anywhere," Zedd told him.

"I'm the leader and I can't ask them to do something that I wouldn't do myself," Jason insisted.

"He's right, Jason. You should take it easy," Trini agreed.

"But-" Jason protested.

"Hey, no one's doubting that you'd be down there fighting, Bro. But you've just been put through the wringer. Give yourself a chance to get up to full strength," Tommy advised and the others nodded worriedly.

"Okay. You're right," Jason said and watched as the others morphed and teleported down to Angel Grove, where the Rangers immediately called for their zords as Zedd used his staff to make Goldar and Scorpina the same height as Travox and his companion.

"You can watch through my telescope," Rita offered and Jason adjusted the tool to his eye level and then watched as Scorpina, Goldar, and the other Rangers fought. Despite his frustration at not being able to fight with the others, he had to smile at the synchronized way they all fought. _We really are a good team_, he thought to himself. Then, he sighed. He still wished he could be out there though.

"I think I can understand how you feel," a voice said behind him. Jason jumped slightly as Zedd came to stand beside him. "My apologies. It was not my intent to startle you," he said.

"Gotta be hard, letting Tommy fight his own battles," Jason commented.

"Indeed," Zedd confirmed. "He's my son. I want to protect him," he continued, using his infrared vision to keep an eye on the fight. Both men winced as the Dragonzord took a staggering blow as did the Triceratops zord. Then, a combined energy blast from the two swords knocked the zords to the ground.

"Come on, you guys. Get up," Jason murmured. Almost as if they had him, the Dragonzord, the Triceratops zord, the Mastodon zord, and the Saber-toothed Tiger zord staggered to a standing position as the Pterodactyl zord rose to the sky. Suddenly, the Triceratops zord fired its grappling hooks, catching Travox and trapping him. Jason watched as the reptilian creature went to go to his partner's aid only to be blasted by the Pterodactyl zord. The Dragonzord launched its missiles and fired just as the other zords did the same. Travox and Linux cried out in pain as they fell to the ground, and a large gash appeared on Travox's torso.

"We have to retreat!" Linux shouted, and the two disappeared back into the Command Center as Zordon's eyes blazed with fury.

"We will get you next time, Power Rangers," he snarled. _You will not escape me, you pitiful humans_, he thought. He especially wanted Jason. He would pay **dearly** for making him look like a fool. Back on the Lunar Palace, Jason smiled and hugged his friends.

"You guys did great. I just wish I could've been there with you," he said.

"Hey, we knew you were with us," Kimberly told him.

"And you'll get another shot at Travox," Tommy assured, causing the others to chuckle.

"You all fought very well, but remember, Zordon won't stop until he's enslaved the world," Rita cautioned.

"Well, we're not going to let that happen," Jason declared.

"Yeah, he'll have to go through us first," Zack agreed and the other teens made similar statements.

"To the protection of Earth," Goldar declared, putting a fist out. One-by-one, Scorpina, Jason, Kimberly, Billy, Trini, Zack, and Tommy put their hands on the fist.

"To the protection of Earth," they all echoed.

THE END

AUTHOR'S NOTE

I may at some point do another fic in this reality, but I don't know.


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